2003 Spring Football

2003

Spring

Football

Frank BeamerHead Coach

Billy HiteAssociate Head Coach

and Running Backs Coach

Bud FosterDefensive Coordinator

and InsideLinebackers Coach

Bryan StinespringOffensive Coordinator and

Offensive Line Coach

Jim CavanaughRecruiting Coordinator andStrong Safety and Outside

Linebackers Coach

Tony BallWide Receivers Coach

Danny PearmanTight Ends and

Offensive Tackles Coach

Kevin RogersQuarterbacks Coach

Lorenzo WardDefensive Backfield Coach

Charley WilesDefensive Line Coach

John BalleinAssociate A.D. for

Football Operations

Diana ClarkSecretary to

Coach Beamer

Bruce GarnesAdministrative

Assistant

Mike GentryAssistant A.D. for

Athletic Performance

Mike GoforthDirector of

Athletic Training

Jay JohnsonAssistant Director of

Strength & Conditioning

Lester KarlinEquipmentManager

Dr. Gunnar BrolinsonTeam

Physician

Lisa MarieFootball Program

Support Technician

J.C. PriceGraduateAssistant

Greg ShockleyGraduateAssistant

Kristie VernielFootball Program

Support Technician

Publication No.: VT/825/0303/300/232246

Virginia Tech Coaches

Football Support Staff

Virginia Tech 2003 Spring Football Outlook 1

ITINERARY: Spring practice is scheduled to runfrom March 22 through April 19. The annualSpring Game is scheduled for Saturday, April 19,at Lane Stadium/Worsham Field, beginning atapproximately 2 p.m.

PRACTICE COVERAGE: Media representativesare welcome to cover Tech football practice, butthey must notify the Virginia Tech SportsInformation Office in advance for proper clearance.All practices, except for the Spring Game, areclosed to the general public. The Hokies willworkout at the football practice fields behind theMerryman Center, or in the event of inclementweather, in Rector Field House. Scrimmages arescheduled to be held at Lane Stadium/WorshamField. Dates and times, listed on this page, aresubject to change. Please note that the scheduledoes not include meeting and conditioningassignments.

INTERVIEWS: Interviews with coaches, playersand staff are arranged through the Virginia TechSports Information Office (540) 231-6726. Playerinterviews are not allowed during practice.

PHOTOGRAPHERS: Cameramen andphotographers may shoot only from the sidelinesat practice. Please refrain from edging onto theplaying field to avoid any injury to players and/orphotographers.

SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAYMarch 16 March 17 March 18 March 19 March 20 March 21 March 22

PRACTICE 11 p.m.-3:15 p.m.

March 23 March 24 March 25 March 26 March 27 March 28 March 29PRACTICE 2 PRACTICE 3 PRACTICE 4 PRACTICE 5

4:15-6:30 p.m. 4:15-6:30 p.m. 4:15-6:30 p.m. 11 a.m.-1:15 p.m.SCRIMMAGE

March 30 March 31 April 1 April 2 April 3 April 4 April 5PRACTICE 6 PRACTICE 7 PRACTICE 8 PRACTICE

4:15-6:30 p.m. 4:15-6:30 p.m. 4:15-6:30 p.m. 11 a.m.-1 p.m.SCRIMMAGE SCRIMMAGE

April 6 April 7 April 8 April 9 April 10 April 11 April 12PRACTICE 10 PRACTICE 11 PRACTICE 12 PRACTICE 134:15-6:30 p.m. 4:15-6:30 p.m. 4:15-6:30 p.m. 1 p.m.-3 p.m.

SCRIMMAGE SCRIMMAGE

April 13 April 14 April 15 April 16 April 17 April 18 April 19PRACTICE 14 PRACTICE 154:15-6:30 p.m. 2 p.m.SCRIMMAGE SPRING GAME

Media Information

Day Date Opponent Location TVSat. Aug. 30 UCF Blacksburg, Va.Sat. Sept. 6 JAMES MADISON Blacksburg, Va.Sat. Sept. 13 OPENThur. Sept. 18 TEXAS A&M Blacksburg, Va. ESPNSat. Sept. 27 CONNECTICUT Blacksburg, Va.Sat. Oct. 4 at Rutgers* Piscataway, N.J.Sat. Oct. 11 SYRACUSE* (Homecoming) Blacksburg, Va.Sat. Oct. 18 OPENWed. Oct. 22 at West Virginia* Morgantown, W.Va. ESPN/ESPN 2Sat. Nov. 1 MIAMI* Blacksburg, Va. ESPNSat. Nov. 8 at Pittsburgh* Pittsburgh, Pa.Sat. Nov. 15 at Temple* Philadelphia, Pa.Sat. Nov. 22 BOSTON COLLEGE* Blacksburg, Va.Sat. Nov. 29 at Virginia Charlottesville, Va.

*BIG EAST Conference gameTimes & TV to be announced.

2003 Schedule

2003 Spring Football Practice Schedule

Virginia Tech

Football

2 Virginia Tech 2003 Spring Football Outlook

Virginia Tech footballcoach Frank Beamerbelieves in the value ofcompetition. And he expectsto see plenty of it when histeam opens 2003 springfootball drills on March 22.

With 47 lettermen, 16starters and both kickersreturning from a team thatwent 10-4 and defeated AirForce in the San FranciscoBowl last year, the Hokieswill field a much moreexperienced team thisseason. That experienceshould give Tech a chancefor another highly successfulseason. But chances don’tguarantee success.

“We feel like we can be agood football team,” saysBeamer. “But having theopportunity, and getting itdone, are two differentthings. Spring practice isabout fundamentals. It’s atime to become solid in yourtechniques. That is going tobe our main emphasis.

“I feel like we’re going tohave good competition atvirtually every position thisspring. When you have goodcompetition, everyone getsbetter.”

Beamer knows that thepublic’s eye will befocused on the Hokies’quarterbackcompetition betweenreturning starterBryan Randall andredshirt freshmanMarcus Vick, theyounger brother offormer Tech All-American, MichaelVick. While thatcompetition may beintriguing, Beamerknows that moreimportant issuesmust be settledelsewhere.

Those issuesbegin with gettingTech’s receiving

corps squared away anddetermining the backups atthe tailback and fullbackpositions. Finding receiversto help draw attention awayfrom record-setting split endErnest Wilford may rank asBeamer’s top priority when itcomes to personnel matters.It could even lead toexperimenting with giftedjunior cornerback DeAngeloHall on offense during thefirst few weeks of the spring.

As for Tech’s offensiveline, Beamer believes it canbe improved over last yearwith a successful spring.

“From top to bottom,we’re probably more athleticthan we have ever been inour offensive line,” he says.“And we’ve got the guy therein the middle (center JakeGrove) to pull the trigger.”

Defensively, the Hokieslost just two starters andhave 15 players back whostarted at least three gameslast fall. This year’s unit hasthe makings of a traditionalTech defense — speed,aggressiveness andtoughness. But Beamer and

his coaches haven’t forgottenthat the defense wassusceptible to the run duringthe second half of lastseason.

“As we evaluated our film,it came back tofundamentals,” saysdefensive coordinator BudFoster. “Guys not securingtheir gap, guys getting cut off— just inconsistent play.There was nothing wrongwith the defensive scheme.

“Last season, every snapwas a learning experience forsome of our guys. We haveto get beyond that andmature as a unit.”

One of the team’s strongpoints will once again be thedefensive end positions,where seniors NathanielAdibi, Cols Colas and JimDavis give Tech one of thebest rotations in the DivisionI-A ranks. The Hokies willalso have quality depth attight end and cornerback.

The Hokies will missrecord-setting tailback LeeSuggs and free safety WilliePile, but their departure willopen the door for future

stars. Junior Kevin Jones,who has rushed for 1,828yards over two seasonsdespite starting just threeregular-season games, willbecome the main man attailback. Sophomore JimmyF. Williams, who has size,speed and unlimitedpotential, is prepared to takePile’s place.

“I feel good about howthings are going right now,”says Beamer. “We havesome good, young talent togo with some older guys likeJake Grove and VegasRobinson. Coach (Mike)Gentry has been veryencouraged by this group’swork habits during ourstrength and conditioningworkouts. And I do think wehave some momentum fromour bowl win.

“We’re going to miss guyslike Lee Suggs, there’s noquestion about it. But wehave a chance to really begood here in the future, too.That doesn’t mean its goingto happen. We have to get itdone.”

Let the competition begin.

The Offense

The loss of fourstarters from last

year’s offensehasn’t detractedfrom theexcitementheading into2003 springpractice. A corenucleus ofplayers andcoaches return,along withseveral newfaces who areexpected toprovideadditionalproductivity forthe Hokies. Withthis group

2003 Spring Outlook

Hokies Expecting Highly Competitive Spring

Coach Frank Beamer andcornerback Vincent Fullercelebrate an interception.


returning, the Tech offensewill use the spring as astepping stone in preparationfor a big 2003 season.

Among the returningstarters are versatilequarterback Bryan Randall,speedy Kevin Jones attailback and the record-breaking Ernest Wilford atreceiver.

Jake Grove and JacobGibson will lead anexperienced line, one thatreturns five players who sawsignificant action in 2002.

The spring will also findtwo young and talentedquarterbacks squaring off forthe first time. While the springwill not determine the starter,it will provide coaches a goodidea of what to expect comeAugust.

Throw in the trial run ofcornerback DeAngelo Hall atthe wide receiver spot andthe five-week session has allthe makings of an intruigingand exciting time.

Offensive Coordinator/Offensive Line Coach BryanStinespring, who now has ayear of play-calling under hisbelt, will use the springsession to keep the veteranssharp while taking a goodlook at the young players whocould contribute this fall.

Stinespring says the goalsfor the spring are prettysimple.

“We want to develop somedepth at every position, andto do that, we need all 11backups to push the starters,”Stinespring says. “We alsoneed to get our receivers tostep up to the plate likeErnest Wilford stepped up tothe plate last season.”

Offensive Line

Line coach BryanStinespring has the luxury ofreturning three starters on aline that helped springrunning backs Lee Suggsand Kevin Jones to biggames last year.

“It helps a lot having threestarters back, but we stillhave a young group,”Stinespring says. “During the

off-season we really want toget these guys bigger andstronger so they can playwith more confidence andintensity. We also want todevelop and solidify depth inour two-deep lineup at eachposition.”

Stinespring will sleep wellknowing that he has seniorJake Grove back at centerthis year. Last season, Grovestarted all 14 games andgraded out at over 90percent for the season,reaching the winner’s circleevery game. He was able tocapitalize on a full seasonwithout injury and his playimproved greatly. While hewasn’t named all-conference,he was named fourth-teamAll-America by The SportingNews.

“Jake has all of the nutsand bolts that you want acenter to have,” Stinespringsays. “He is tough, physical,aggressive and has theintangibles needed to playthe position well. He’s a greatleader and he really sets thepace for the rest of theoffensive line.”

Robert Ramsey andDanny McGrath, who have

both seen limited action, arecandidates for the back-upspot at center. Januaryenrollee Tripp Carroll will beworking at learning twopositions, with one of hisfocuses at the center spot.

At the guard positions,Stinespring has a talentedand focused group returningthis season. Jacob Gibsonwill return as a starter at theleft guard spot, while JamesMiller goes into the spring asthe No. 1 right guard.

Gibson started 12 gamesfor the Hokies in 2002 andgraded out at 85 percent forthe season. He has theversatility to play either tackleposition but will go into hislast spring as a guard.

“Jacob is having a greatoff-season and is reallyworking hard in morningworkouts,” Stinespring says.“He is really a tough guy andhas experience that hebrings to the table. We lookforward to a good spring fromhim.”

Miller saw action at bothleft and right guard in 2002.The 6-6, 304-pound juniorhas gained a goodunderstanding of the Tech

system and will be looked tofor leadership on the line thisspring.

“Jimmy is a guy who isvery determined,” Stinespringsays. “He gives great effortand determination at practiceand he’s a guy who we lookforward to seeing performwell during the spring.”

Former walk-on WillMontgomery will enter thespring as the No. 2 man atthe left guard spot.Montgomery played in fourgames during the 2002season, recording twoknockdown blocks.

Jason Murphy, who hasmoved to the offensive linefrom the defensive side ofthe ball, will work behindMiller at right guard alongwith Carroll.

At the tackle positions,Stinespring returns severalplayers with playing orstarting experience. JonDunn and Jimmy Martin willhead into spring practice atthe No. 1 spots at right andleft tackle, respectively.

Dunn started sevengames last season andgraded out at 80.3 percentfor the year. The 6-7, 343-pound junior will be lookingto become more consistentand physical at the point ofattack during spring practice.

“Jon has all of the basicsin place,” Stinespring says.“We just need to work on himbecoming a consistentlydominating player. With agood spring he can be areally good player for us nextseason.”

Martin, who started sevengames at the right tackleposition last season hasmade the move over to lefttackle and will bring hisathleticism and experience tothe position.

“Jimmy is one of the bestathletes we have on theoffensive line,” Stinespringsays. “We really need ourbest tackle on the left side toprotect our right-handedquarterbacks and we feelthat the move will be greatfor him and for the offensiveline unit.”

Tech’s Jacob Gibson (60)


Nathaniel Adibi

• Second-team All-BIG EAST defensive lineman• Honorable mention All-American by CNNSI.com

Vinnie Burns

• Second-team All-BIG EAST punter

Anthony Davis

• Second-team All-BIG EAST offensive lineman

Jake Grove

• Fourth-team All-American by The Sporting News

DeAngelo Hall

• Second-team All-BIG EAST defensive back• Second-team All-BIG EAST return man

Jonathan Lewis

• Fourth-team Freshman All-American by The Sporting News

Willie Pile

• Second-team All-American by The Sporting News• Second-team All-BIG EAST free safety

Lee Suggs

• Second-team All-BIG EAST running back

Ernest Wilford

• Second-team All-BIG EAST wide receiver

Tech Players Honored in 2002

Backing up Dunn will beredshirt-freshman BrandonGore, who, at 6-5 and over300 pounds will bringstrength and size to thetackle spot.

Behind Martin will beReggie Butler, who sawlimited action last season asa freshman. With a great off-season, he will be countedon to help a lot at the lefttackle spot.

“I’m really excited aboutthis offensive line group,”Stinespring said. “I just can’tsay enough about how hardthey’ve worked so far in theoff-season. I think if theycontinue to push themselvesto get stronger and moreconfident then we will see abigger, more intense groupon the field going into thespring and fall.”

Tight Ends

The Hokies will return allthree tight ends from 2002,including Keith Willis and Jeff

King, who split time as thestarter last year, and JaredMazzetta, who will also bebattling for the starting job.

“All three got playing timelast year,” says tight endscoach Danny Pearman. “Ithink it’s going to beextremely competitive at thisposition during the spring.They each bring somethingslightly different to the tablethat we’ll be able to use.”

Willis, a redshirt senior,had the most impressivestats last year and startedthe first eight games. TheNorfolk, Va., native hadseven catches for 168 yardsand a score. AgainstSyracuse, he hauled in twopasses for 113 yards,including an 87-yarder.

“We expect Keith as asenior to step in and be aleader for us in both workethic and on the fieldperformance,” Pearman says.“He’s really dedicated himselfhere in the off-season and

I’ve seen some really positiveresults from him.”

King will be right withWillis for the starting job. ThePulaski native is the biggestof the three at 6-5, 258pounds and has excellenthands. He came in andstarted the last five games ofthe 2002 season, includingthe bowl game. The redshirtsophomore caught just onepass — a 19-yarder — but itwent for a touchdown inTech’s opener againstArkansas State.

“Jeff is just a steadyplayer,” Pearman says. “He isalways working and is alwaystrying to get better. He’s avery dependable person whowill help us a lot at tight end.”

Mazzetta, a redshirtjunior, was competitive withWillis and King in the 2002preseason before an ankleinjury sidelined him for acouple of weeks. He wasnever able to catch up andwas used mostly on specialteams. He had one catch for19 yards last season.

The Hokies will also havethe services of newcomerMatt Roan, a January

enrollee from Fork UnionMilitary Academy. He playedbehind King at PulaskiCounty High School and willbring more depth to theposition.

“This spring we are in abetter position than last yearwhen we had three guys whohadn’t seen much playingtime,” Pearman says. “Wewant to use the spring to getbetter at blocking at the pointof attack and getting the tightends more involved in theoffense.”

Quarterbacks

All eyes will be on thequarterbacks this spring ascoach Kevin Rogers has theluxury of having two talentedplayers ready to battle it out.

The job is Bryan Randall’sand he is considered thestarting quarterback, but thatdoesn’t mean he won’t bepushed for the job. The juniorcame in last season andstarted the final 12 games.He threw for 2,134 yards andran for 507 and finishedranked 10th in the nation inpass efficiency. He showed

Jeff King


leadership and maturity inguiding the Hokies to a 10-win season.

“Bryan played relativelywell. I thought at times, hehad spurts of playing greatfootball. Right now, theglaring issue is turnovers andwe’ll address that in thespring and get those thingscorrected,” Rogers says. “Hisoverall feel for the game hasto continue to come alongand he needs to continue towork on his arm strength.”

In the other corner isredshirt freshman MarcusVick, who has added nearly20 pounds of muscle sincearriving in Blacksburg andspent last year soaking in thecollege game. Vick is anexciting player with a strongarm and a knack for thegame. This spring will be hisfirst true test in the collegegame and Rogers is lookingforward to seeing how heprogresses.

“Marcus has the sameproblem we had going intolast season, in that he has noexperience,” Rogers says. “Ithink he made a lot of stridesin terms of learning oursystem and football ingeneral. He still has a longway to go, but we made somein-roads this year.

“I’m going to watch bothBryan and Marcus compete,but I don’t want to make anybones about it, Bryan Randallis our quarterback right now,”Rogers says. “It is incumbenton Marcus to take that jobaway from him. Bryan isgoing to be very competitivewith that job and I expectgood competition from both ofthem.”

Running Backs

Billy Hite has had a greattailback each of the last fouryears. This year should be nodifferent. Despite losing LeeSuggs, who will go down asone of the greatest backs inTech history, Hite will onceagain have the services ofKevin Jones.

“You hate losing a playerlike Lee, but you haveanother guy who’s been

waiting his turn and I thinkthat’s the way Kevinapproached it the last weeksof the season,” Hite says.“The first thing I told him afterthe bowl game was that itwas his turn and he got a bigsmile on his face and I thinkhe’s very excited about hisopportunity.

“He’s a guy who has achance to be one of the bestfootball players ever to play atVirginia Tech. He’s gotten somuch better in every phase ofthe game and knows so muchmore. He’s ready to take theposition and run with it.”

Jones was having a great2002 campaign before ahamstring pull againstPittsburgh slowed him for theyear. Once back, Jonesdeveloped a fumbling habit,one that Hite promises totake care of this spring.

“The fumbles are a mentalthing and most of them comeon second-effort,” Hite says.“He needs to make betterdecisions on getting downand holding the ball close tohis body. It will be correctedthis spring for sure. Butbefore his hamstring injury,he was having a great seasonfor us and we’re excited aboutwhat he can do for thisprogram.”

In all, he rushed for 871yards and nine touchdownswhile sharing the ball withSuggs. Jones, a rising junior,will be the feature back thisfall and it’s now his time toshine.

Mike Imoh, a sophomorefrom Fairfax, will battle withCedric Humes for the No. 2spot. Imoh rushed just 10times for 38 yards last year,but was the odd-man-outwhen it came to carries. Hitehopes to use the spring as amajor stepping-stone for thespeedy back.

“I felt bad I didn’t get Mikein there more after we movedhim back from the widereceiver spot, but he is agreat talent,” Hite says. “Mikewas ready, mentally, to play ifhe was ever called on. Heunderstands what we’re doingand he understands the

system. I’m really excitedabout him getting a lot of repsthis spring.”

Humes, a redshirtsophomore, will see action atboth tailback and fullback.The Virginia Beach nativeserved as the No. 2 fullbacklast year, but has the speedand skills to play tailback ifneeded. He carried the ball16 times for 68 yards lastyear and also caught sevenpasses for 76 yards.

“Cedric will play bothpositions, concentrating moreon the tailback spot,” Hitesays. “He spent a year atfullback and we want to makesure that if anything happensat the fullback spot, we canmove him back.”

John Candelas, a walk-onfrom Blacksburg, will providedepth at the tailback positionand is working hard to workhis way into the rotation. Thesophomore scored atouchdown last year againstMarshall.

The fullback positionappears to be in good handsas redshirt senior DougEaslick returns. Deemed “oneof the biggest surprises oflast season” by Hite, Easlickcame in and didn’t miss abeat in filling in for four-yearstarter Jarrett Ferguson.

“For him to come in andplay the way he did wasoutstanding and amazing,”Hite says. “ I’m tickled todeath to have him back again.I didn’t think anyone couldcome in and replace Jarrett,but Doug Easlick did just thatand had a great year.”

The bruising back fromMarlton, N.J., started all 14games and opened most ofthe holes for one of the bestrushing offenses last year. Healso carried the ball 19 timesfor 92 yards and showedexcellent hands, catching 16passes for 168 yards and atouchdown.

A pair of walk-ons, JesseAllen and Luke Dales, will

Cedric Humes


battle with Humes for repsthis spring in hopes of seeingaction in the fall.

Wide Receivers

Receivers coach Tony Ballhas the luxury of havingrecord-setting split endErnest Wilford back, but healso has to replace sure-handed Shawn Witten atflanker.

“We have a good group ofyoung players coming back,but we lose a guy like ShawnWitten who knew the offenseand it’s hard to replace thosekind of players who you candepend on,” Ball says.“Shawn is a tough guy toreplace, but we’re going touse the spring to see whosteps up to fill his shoes.”

Leading the troops will beErnest Wilford, who set a newTech record with 51 catches ayear ago. The redshirt seniorhas the size at 6-4 to be anoutstanding receiver and willbe counted on for biggerthings this year. Last season,he had 925 yards and seventouchdowns.

“We have to look at Ernestand figure out what we cando to help him get better fornext year,” Ball says. “Thispast year, he was a guy goinginto the season where therewas a lot of talk questioninghim. Now he had a real goodyear.

“He was consistent, heworked hard and as a result,he had great success. He’sgoing to play a big part ofgetting these young playerson track.”

Richard Johnson, aspeedy receiver fromBaltimore, will head intospring practice leading theway at flanker. The redshirtjunior started two games lastseason and caught 14passes for 147 yards. He willbe pushed by several youngplayers in the spring as thegroup battles it out jockeyingfor position heading into fall.

“Richard, going into thespring, has got to play fasterfor me,” Ball says. “He’s goingto have to work extremelyhard on his flexibility in his

hips so he can be moreexplosive. Right now, I’m notsold on the fact that he’s theguy for me. Richard is smart,has real good hands andcatches the ball well, but Ineed him to become a blur.”

Justin Hamilton saw hisplaying time increase lastseason and will be pushed byBall this spring. He wasmoved from tailback to wideout early last spring andmade great strides every day.He brings size (6-3, 209) andathleticism to the position andwill enter the spring looking tocatch the eye of the coaches.

“Justin still has a lot tolearn,” Ball says. “He wasn’t areceiver, so he’s still learninghow to be a receiver. He’sworking on becoming morecomfortable at the position,but now he has to developthat receiver mentality andwork ethic.”

Redshirt sophomore ChrisClifton and redshirt seniorChris Shreve will also get

looks this spring. Clifton hasgood size, at 6-4, and speed,but needs to learn theposition. Shreve is one of thefastest players on the teamand will use the spring to tryto move into position for moreplaying time.

Ball will also use thespring to bring along fourplayers who redshirted lastseason. Robert Parker, FredLee, Brenden Hill andMichael Malone all have thepotential, but will have to takeadvantage of the spring tomake a name for themselves.

“We have to take a goodlook at them this spring andsee how they fit into the planfor this fall,” Ball says.

Parker has the coachesexcited about his potential.He’s another receiver withgood size (6-1, 207) who hasa good work ethic on the fieldand in the classroom.

Lee is a speedster who,although he doesn’t havegreat size, does run good

routes and has good hands.He could be a big threat forthe Hokies at either positionbecause of his good speedand quickness.

Malone has the size (6-3,202) and the pedigree (son ofNBA Hall of Famer MosesMalone) to be a great player,but is lacking the experience.If he can get stronger andadjust to the college game,he could be a factor for theHokies down the road.

Ball says, going intospring, he has two main goalsfor his group of receivers.

“As a group, we need tobe more physical in therunning game,” Ball says. “Ifelt we lacked explosivenessat the point of attack in therunning game and thatbothered me. We also have toget better in our routeexecution, especially in thedeeper routes.

“Right now, there is nostarter at flanker; it’s wideopen,” Ball says. “I’m going to

Richard Johnson

Justin Hamilton


give Richard and Justin achance to battle for it, but I’malso going to move Justinaround. Right now, noposition is solid except forone, and I’m going to pushthat one.”

The DefenseDefensively, this will be a

much different spring thanlast year for coordinator BudFoster. A year ago, Fosterand his defensive staff had toreplace their top fivedefensive tackles, their topthree inside linebackers andtwo starters in the secondary.

This year, the Hokiesreturn nine defensive startersand most of their backups.Only five players are gonefrom last year’s unit —starting free safety WilliePile, starting cornerbackRonyell Whitaker, end LamarCobb, rover Billy Hardee andlinebacker AlexMarkogiannakis.

“We’re deep at severalpositions,” Foster says. “Andwe have some players whoredshirted last year who arehungry to play and may endup pushing some people.That’s what it’s all about,getting each other better. Youhave to have that competitionto improve.”

The strong point of thedefense should once againbe the defensive ends. Withseniors Nathaniel Adibi, ColsColas and Jim Davis beingjoined by youngsters DarrylTapp and Noland Burchette,the Hokies have one of thebest groups of ends in schoolhistory.

Foster will be looking forthose ends to be leaders fora group of tackles who arestill young, but far moreexperienced than a year ago.Every player who saw actionat tackle for Tech last seasonis back and there is a bigaddition in transfer IsaacMontgomery. There may notbe a position on the teamwith more competition.

All three startinglinebackers also return, butdeveloping more depth at

tackle spots where a bevy ofyoung players picked upsome valuable experience in2002.

“We want to get betteroverall this spring,” saysdefensive line coach CharleyWiles. “We want to continueto bring along our ends andnot let them get complacent.Individually, each player attackle has something a littledifferent he needs toimprove, but as a unit, wehave got to become morephysical. We have to get offmore blocks and make moretackles in there.”

There were no signs ofcomplacency at the endpositions during the 2002season when Adibi, Colas,Davis and senior LamarCobb combined for 24.5quarterback sacks and 62quarterback hurries.

Adibi was a standout on

the Hokies’ young defense,posting 55 tackles, ninesacks and 15 total tackles forloss. The 6-3, 255-poundperformer added 16 hurries,three forced fumbles and twopasses broken up on the wayto second-team All-BIGEAST Conference honors.One of his forced fumbleswas returned for atouchdown at WesternMichigan. During his Techcareer, Adibi has started 34of the 38 games in which hehas played, including threebowl games. He turned in a575-pound back squat andran a 4.5 forty during off-season testing.

Colas, who will be heldout of contact work duringthe spring after surgery torepair a patella tendon, wasequally as effective in 2002.He contributed 51 tacklesand, like Adibi, forced threefumbles. His team-leading 19tackles for loss included ninesacks. He also topped theteam with 24 quarterbackhurries. At 6-0, 226, Colashas a combination of power(390 bench press) andexplosive speed (4.41) thatmakes him hard to handle onthe corner.

Davis, who is consideredthe Hokies’ most talentedend, has been bothered bynagging injuries the past twoseasons. During the 2002season, he suffered an ankleinjury against LSU thatlimited his effectiveness. The6-3, 255-pound Davisfinished the season with 37tackles, including 5.5 sacksand nine total tackles forloss. He had 10 hurries andbroke up three passes. Whenhealthy, Davis is a play-maker who can disrupt agame. As a sophomore heintercepted a pass andreturned it for a touchdownand forced two fumbles thatwere returned for TDs. Thecoaches are hoping he canavoid injuries this year andbecome an every-downplayer.

Tech’s talent at the endposition doesn’t stop with theseniors. Sophomore Darryl

those positions and findingthe right position for some ofthe younger players will beone of the focal points of thespring. One such move willfind redshirt sophomoreJames Anderson movingfrom the backer position towhip linebacker where Tech’scoaches feel his skills, sizeand speed may be betterutilized.

Filling out the positions inthe secondary, where juniorcornerback DeAngelo Hallfigures to be one of thenation’s best, will also be anemphasis and should bemade easier by a deep poolof talented candidates.

“Our guys grew up somuch last year,” Fosters says.“That experience is going tohelp us. I like these kids.They worked hard every daywhen we had those threetough losses back-to-backlast season. Theywant to be good,we’ve just got to doit on a consistentbasis.

“Being sound,fundamentally, andbeing consistent areour main objectivesof the spring.Obviously, we’realways going to havesome little wrinkleswe are going to workon to try and tweakthe defense a littlebit. But the mainfocus is going to begetting our guys tobe productive on amore consistentbasis.”

Defensive Line

When assessingTech’s strong pointsfor 2003, there is nobetter place to startthan with thedefensive ends. Thesenior trio ofNathaniel Adibi,Cols Colas and JimDavis is as good asit gets. The Hokiesshould also be muchimproved at the

Tech in the NCAA

Rankings

(Top 30 only)

Team Statistics

Rushing Offense YPG

19th Virginia Tech 283.62Pass Efficiency Offense PTS

15th Virginia Tech 139.53

Punt Returns YPR16th Virginia Tech 13.95

Rushing Defense YPG29th Virginia Tech 121.43

Pass Efficiency Defense PTS26th Virginia Tech 108.21

Scoring Defense PPG21st Virginia Tech 18.79

Scoring Offense PPG30th Virginia Tech 30.64

Passes Intercepted No.1st Virginia Tech 24

Turnovers Gained No.5th Virginia Tech 37

Individual Statistics

Punt Returns YPR7th DeAngelo Hall 16.00

Scoring PPG5th Lee Suggs 10.29

Pass Efficiency Rating10th Bryan Randall 143.09


Tapp and redshirt freshmanNoland Burchette are bothexpected to get a long lookduring the spring as Wilesbegins to round out hisrotation at the end positions.Walk-ons Bob Ruff and GregKezmarsky will also be onhand.

Tapp started on fivedifferent special teams lastyear as a true freshman andsaw some limited work atend. He increased his weightto 246 pounds during thewinter and turned in a 380-pound bench press on theway to Super Iron Hokiehonors. Burchette (6-2, 240)impressed Tech’s coacheswith his quickness, athleticability and football instinctswhile redshirting during thefall.

The stability at end willallow Wiles some extra timeto concentrate on thecompetition at tackle.

“We have a heavilycompetitive situation goingon inside,” Wiles says, “It’syear-to-year, game-to-game.If you started last year, itdoesn’t mean you’re going tostart this year. And it youstarted last week, it doesn’tmean you are going to startthis week. The guys who aregoing to give us the bestchance of winning are goingto play.”

Every player who sawaction at tackle last season isback, led by starters KevinLewis (6-1, 292) and JasonLallis (6-0, 250). Lewis washaving an outstandingseason until a torn pectoralmuscle sidelined him for thefinal three games of the year.He contributed 49 tackles,including five behind the lineof scrimmage, and registeredsix quarterback hurries.Lewis will not participate inspring contact drills. Lallis isan instinctive, tough player,who finds a way to get offblocks and make plays. Heled the defensive tackles inquarterback hurries withseven and contributed 48tackles and two quarterbacksacks. He also returned afumble 59 yards for a

touchdown against ArkansasState. Lallis suffered aninjury in the same game asLewis and missed twogames, but will participate inspring practice.

Sophomores JonathanLewis (6-1. 292) and TimSandidge (6-1, 283), areexpected to be in the thick ofthe battle for playing timealong with senior Jimmy E.Williams. Another strongcandidate will be transferIsaac Montgomery.

Lewis and Sandidgemoved into the lineup lastyear in the absence of KevinLewis and Lallis. JonathanLewis, Kevin’s youngerbrother, saw action in everygame and ended up leadingthe defensive line in tackleswith 56. The younger Lewishad seven tackles for loss,including two sacks, and fivehurries. He still has somethings to learn, but has an

extremely bright future.Sandidge, who has

shown steady improvementduring his time at Tech, ledthe tackles in sacks (4) andpasses batted down (3) lastseason. He closed out theseason with 30 total tackles.During winter workouts,Sandidge turned in apersonal-best 605-poundback squat and a 4.79clocking in the 40.

Williams (6-3, 335) cameto Tech during the summerwith high expectations, butnever quite got on track. Theformer JUCO All-Americanwas held out of practicewhile awaiting results of asummer course. After beingcleared for practice, hesuffered a series of nagginginjuries and ended up seeingplaying time in just fivegames. Spring practice willoffer Williams a newbeginning and a chance to

meet his expectations.The Tech coaches are

excited about Montgomery,who practiced with the teamduring the fall aftertransferring from theUniversity of North Carolina.The 6-4, 297-pound juniorcould make a real impact thisspring. During winterworkouts, Montgomery ledthe defensive line with a 415-pound bench press andposted a 600-pound backsquat.

“We’re a little nicked upgoing into spring with Cols,Kevin Lewis and Lallis allhaving little problems rightnow,” Wiles says. “But thatwill allow us to get JimmyWilliams, Jonathan Lewis,Isaac Montgomery and TimSandidge a ton of plays.”

The Hokies’ defensive linedepth is good enough thatsix players who practiced asdefensive linemen during thefall have been moved to theoffensive line for springpractice. That group includedtackles Jason Murphy, ChrisPannell, Chris Burnett, KevinHilton and Andrew Fleck andend Brandon Frye.

Wiles feels his young linedid some good things lastseason, but he hasn’tforgotten the fact that teamswere able to run on Hokiesdown the stretch.

“We’re not where weneed to be yet,” he says. “Butwe have improved. Rightnow, our kids are all gettingbigger and stronger, so if wego out and continue toimprove this spring, we’llhave a chance to be prettygood.”

Linebackers

Unlike last spring, theemphasis at the linebackerpositions this year will beestablishing depth ratherthan determining starters.After playing the 2002season with newcomershandling the mike, backerand whip positions, theHokies now have threetested starters.

Last season, mikelinebacker Mikal Baaqee led

Kevin Lewis will not participatein spring contact drills.


OFFENSE (Multiple)SE 19 Ernest Wilford (6-4, 221, r-Sr.)

81 Chris Shreve (6-0, 188, r-Sr.)

LT 52 Jimmy Martin (6-5, 283, So.)61 Reggie Butler (6-6, 333, So.)

LG 60 Jacob Gibson (6-4, 306, r-Sr.)66 Will Montgomery (6-4, 298, r-So.)

C 64 Jake Grove (6-3, 300, r-Sr.)68 Robert Ramsey (6-3, 307, r-Jr.)

RG 76 James Miller (6-6, 304, Jr.)72 Jason Murphy (6-2, 296, r-So.)

RT 79 Jon Dunn (6-7, 343, r-Jr.)77 Brandon Gore (6-5, 328, r-Fr.)

TE 86 Keith Willis (6-5, 264, r-Sr.)or 90 Jeff King (6-5, 256-r-So.)

QB 3 Bryan Randall (6-0, 222, Jr.)5 Marcus Vick (6-0, 203, r-Fr.)

TB 25 Kevin Jones (6-0, 209, Jr.)32 Cedric Humes (6-1, 223, r-So.)

FB 43 Doug Easlick (5-11, 238, r-Sr.)32 Cedric Humes (6-1, 223, r-So.)

FL 12 Richard Johnson (5-10, 189, r-Jr.)or 27 Justin Hamilton (6-3, 209, r-So.)

PK 49 Carter Warley (5-11, 198, r-Sr.)23 Nic Schmitt (6-1, 242, So.)

Depth chart is subject to change.

DEFENSE (4-3)DE 83 Nathaniel Adibi (6-3, 255, r-Sr.)

95 Jim Davis (6-3, 255, Sr.)

DT 91 Jason Lallis (6-0, 250, r-Jr.)or 56 Jonathan Lewis (6-1, 292, So.)

DT 70 Kevin Lewis (6-1, 292, r-Jr.)*71 Tim Sandidge (6-1, 283, r-So.)

DE 99 Cols Colas (6-0, 226, r-Sr.)*96 Noland Burchette (6-2, 240, r-Fr.)

OLB 48 Brandon Manning (6-0, 216, r-Jr.)42 James Anderson (6-2, 217, r-So.)

ILB 45 Mikal Baaqee (5-10, 227, r-Jr.)33 Chad Cooper (6-2, 211, r-Jr.)

ILB 6 Vegas Robinson (6-0, 244, r-Sr.)40 Blake Warren (6-3, 232, r-So.)

FC 8 Vincent Fuller (6-1, 181, r-Jr.)1 Eric Green (5-11, 190, r-Jr.)

FS 18 Jimmy F. Williams (6-3, 213, So.)31 Mike Daniels (6-0, 205, r-Jr.)

ROV 21 Michael Crawford (5-11, 209, r-Sr.)24 D.J. Walton (5-9, 200, r-So.)

BC 4 DeAngelo Hall (5-11, 198, Jr.)17 Garnell Wilds (5-11, 196, r-Sr.)

P 38 Vinnie Burns (5-11, 202, r-Jr.)23 Nic Schmitt (6-1, 242, So.)

*Will not participate in spring contact drills

2003 Spring Two-Deep Roster

the team in tackles with 112in his first season as aregular. Backer VegasRobinson finished fourth intackles (71), despite missingthree games. BrandonManning, the starter at whip,finished third on the team intackles with 75.

“The guy who reallyperformed well was MikalBaaqee,” says insidelinebackers coach BudFoster. “He was alwaysaround the football. Mikal hasgood speed and a goodmotor. During the off-season,he really worked hard to getbigger so he can get offblocks better and get inposition for tackling.”

Baaqee, a redshirt junior,is up to 227 pounds from hisplaying weight of around 215last season. He started everygame but one during the2002 season, edging out

safety Willie Pile for the teamlead in tackles and finishingthird on the team in tacklesfor loss with 12. Baaqee had3.5 quarterback sacks, eightquarterback hurries, fivepass breakups and oneinterception. He earnedSuper Iron Hokie honorsduring preseason athleticperformance testing.

At 6-0, 244, Robinsongives the Hokies a physicalpresence at backer. He hadthree pass interceptions togo with his 71 tackles. Afterplaying just 78 defensiveplays in 2001, Robinson wasin on over 500 plays last fall.He was missed while sittingout three games with anankle injury, especially inlosses to Pittsburgh andSyracuse. As the lone seniorin Tech’s group oflinebackers, Robinson will belooked to for leadership.

“Vegas is a solid footballplayer,” says Foster. “Whenhe was out, it hurt us. He is aphysical guy who can run.He’s been in our defenseseveral years, so heunderstands it. I amexpecting him to really stepup and improve.”

Manning is anothersuccessful product of Tech’swalk-on program, havingalready earned a scholarshipand a starting position. Hehad five tackles for loss lastseason, including a sack,and broke up two passes.The redshirt junior joinedBaaqee and Robinson as aSuper Iron Hokie during theoff-season.

“Manning has reallyworked hard to get where heis,” says whip linebackerscoach Jim Cavanaugh. “He’stough, he’s smart and he hasplayed.”

Manning’s experience willgive him a definite edge, butthere will be goodcompetition at the positionduring the spring. Thecoaches have moved redshirtsophomore James Andersonfrom backer to whip.Anderson, another SuperIron Hokie, was pressed intostarting duty for three gameslast season as a freshmanreplacing Robinson. Hefinished the season with 48tackles and 1.5 sacks. Hissize (6-2, 217) and speed(4.43) figure to be a good fitfor the new position

Redshirt freshman AaronRouse is another talentedchallenger at the whipposition. Rouse, who is 6-3,203, has all the skills tobecome an outstandingplayer for the Hokies. Walk-on Patrick Hackley-Houghwill also work at the position.

Chad Cooper and JordanTrott will work behind Baaqeeat the mike linebacker spot.Cooper, a redshirt junior,returned to the team lastsummer following a bout withGuillain-Barré syndrome, aserious disorder of thenervous system. He played in13 games during the 2002season, but never quite

Mikal Baaqeewas Tech’sleading tacklerin 2002.


returned to the form thatmade him one of the Hokies’most improved players in2001.

“I’m anxious to see howChad does,” Foster says.“Last fall, he said he wasonly about 80-85 percent.Right now, he says he feelsvery, very good. He was oneof our most improved guysbefore he contractedGuillain-Barré, but just nevergot back to where he was.I’m hoping this spring, he’llhave a chance to get back inthe flow.

“He could play backer ormike – he just hasn’t gotten alot of reps this past year. Hehas the ability. I’m lookingforward to seeing where hefits in.”

Trott, a 6-4, 245-poundredshirt sophomore, got ataste of action last seasonand was Tech’s leadingtackler on special teams. Heis expected to be ready forthe spring after banging uphis knee in the Hokies’ SanFrancisco Bowl win over AirForce.

The competition forRobinson at the backerposition this spring will beprovided by redshirtsophomore Blake Warren.Warren, a safety in highschool, made a goodtransition to linebacker lastspring, but was slowed bynagging injuries during mostof the 2002 season. Heplayed in nine games andposted just 12 tackles. Heintercepted a pass againstWest Virginia.

“It was disappointing lastseason that Blake wasbanged up,” Foster says. “Hehad a great spring in 2002. Ithink he is a guy who has theopportunity to help us. Hesees things instinctively. Hestill needs to get stronger,but he is a good footballplayer.”

Warren will be joined bywalk-on J.D. Zeigler behindRobinson.

The competition thisspring will just be thebeginning of the search for

depth at the linebacker spots.When practice opens inAugust, Foster will welcomea recruiting class thatfeatures three of the nation’stop 10 prep linebackers asselected by Tom Lemming.

Secondary

Despite the loss of Pile,Whitaker and Hardee, Techshould still be solid in thesecondary with a number oftalented — and experienced— players returning.

Leading the way is Hall,who has all the tools to be aspecial player. The dynamicjunior cornerback was asecond team All-BIG EASTpick last season as both adefensive back and a returnman. He posted 55 tackles,four interceptions and ateam-leading 12 passbreakups despite seeing onlybrief action in three of theHokies’ last four regular-

season games due to a soreback. He was in on 16tackles against Miami.

“DeAngelo had a goodseason last year, but he didsome things that he knowshe can’t do in big games,”says secondary coachLorenzo Ward. “He knows hehas to become moredisciplined as a player andthat is what we will work onthis spring. I believe he willdedicate himself to being theplayer he is capable of beingevery down.”

It appears that some ofHall’s downs may be spent atwide receiver during at leastpart of the spring. His mainjob come fall, however, willstill be at the Hokies’boundary corner position.

Joining Hall at theboundary spot is seniorGarnell Wilds, who hasdeveloped into one of Tech’smost dependable players.

Wilds was a spot starter infour games last season andled the team and the BIGEAST Conference ininterceptions with five. Healso contributed 44 tacklesand broke up seven passes.

The battle for Whitaker’sspot at the field corner,figures to produce somegood competition betweenredshirt juniors Vincent Fullerand Eric Green. Fuller wasmoved to corner from freesafety last fall to help outwhen Whitaker wassuspended for two gamesand Green was sidelined bya season-ending knee injury.Fuller played in every game,including four as a starter,and played extremely well attimes. He intercepted fourpasses and posted 23tackles. With a little addedstrength and discipline, Fullerhas all the skills to besuccessful,

Green played in 23 of 24games at corner during hisfirst two seasons at Tech. Hewas running neck and neckwith Whitaker for the startingduties at field corner beforehis injury, Green has workedhard to return to action andwill get every chance to winthe position during thespring.

Several other players whoare expected to get a look atthe cornerback positionsduring the spring are redshirtfreshmen Brian McPhersonand Cary Wade and walk-onsKofi Boateng and RyanHash. McPherson and Hashwill work at the field corner,while Wade and Boateng willbe used at the boundaryposition.

Pile’s safety position isexpected to go to impressivesophomore Jimmy F.Williams, who came onstrong as his freshman yearprogressed. Williams sawmost of his action on specialteams until the end of theyear when he saw extensiveaction at Miami and in theHokies’ San Francisco Bowlvictory against Air Force.Williams finished the season

Garnell Wilds


with 46 tackles and oneinterception.

“Jimmy has some bigshoes to fill, but I feel he iscapable of doing it,” saysWard. “We’ve got to takeadvantage of these 15 dayswe have in the spring andhelp him get a goodunderstanding of our system.I am excited about Jimmyand his promise for thefuture.”

Williams could be pushedfor the free safety job byMike Daniels or CoreyGordon. Daniels is a physicalplayer who is being movedover from whip linebackerwhere he saw considerableaction over the past twoseasons. The junior startedhis Tech career working atfree safety during a redshirtyear. He started four gamesat whip in 2001 and onegame last year. Gordon is apromising freshman recruit,who entered Tech in Januaryafter attending HargraveAcademy during the fall.Walk-on Adrian White willalso compete at the position.

“I feel really good aboutthe players we have at thecornerback and free safetypositions,” Ward says. “We’vegot a lot of experiencecoming back. After reviewingthe film from last season, Ifeel like there are quite a fewthings we can improve. I willbreak those things down onan individual basis and thatis what we will work on thisspring.”

Over at the rover position,10-game starter MichaelCrawford returns with a cleanbill of health. The seniorperformer underwent aseries of tests and biopsieslate in the season forpossible lymphoma, butmissed just one game. Hefinished the season with 49tackles, including two sacksand four total tackles for loss.He was found to be free ofany form of cancer inJanuary.

Crawford is joined atrover by redshirt sophomoreD.J. Walton, who moved to

ends up in the spring … theplayers are going todetermine that.”

Special TeamsWhen Beamer said he felt

there would be competitionat virtually every position, hewas definitely includingspecial teams.

“Kicking-wise, I’m reallyinterested in getting a lot ofcompetition this spring,” saysBeamer, who oversees thepunters and place-kickers. “Ireally don’t think we are goodenough right now on ourkickoffs and our field goalpercentage.”

Starting place-kickerCarter Warley returns after atopsy-turvy season that sawthe Hokies use threedifferent kickers. Warley, asenior, remains the mostexperienced candidate forthe duties. When healthy, heis extremely accurate, but hisbouts with back problems

have had a major impact onhis consistency.

Nic Schmitt, a strong-legged sophomore, got abrief kicking stint lastseason, but also struggledwith his accuracy on fieldgoals. Warley, Schmitt andredshirt freshman BrandonPace will all get a chance tostake their claim to theplace-kicking and kickoffduties during the spring.

Junior Vinnie Burns, whowas named second-teamAll-BIG EAST Conferencelast season, returns asTech’s punter. Burnsaveraged 40.5 yards on 64punts last season andplaced 22 punts inside the20-yard line. Burns will getcompetition from Schmittand senior Bobby Peaslee.

Peaslee returns as theHokies’ holder, but thesnapping duties will be wideopen with the departure ofthree-year starter KenKeister. Redshirt freshmanNick Leeson and redshirtjunior Travis Conway will beamong the candidates forthe snapping duties.

Punt return manDeAngelo Hall and kickoffreturner Richard Johnsonare both back. Hall finishedseventh nationally in puntreturns in 2002 and wasnamed second team All-BIGEAST as a return man. Heaveraged 16 yards perreturn and brought tworeturns back fortouchdowns. Johnson, whohad a 91-yard kickoff returnagainst Miami, averaged21.1 yards on 23 returns.

Tech continued itstradition for blocking kickslast season with sevenblocks. Every player whohad a block returns thisseason, including redshirtsophomore Justin Hamilton,who had two blocks. Thereturn of Eric Green, whomissed the 2002 seasonwith a knee injury, shouldgive Tech’s kick block teaman added boost. Greenblocked three punts duringhis first two seasons.

the position midway throughthe 2002 season, and JUCOAll-American James Griffin, amember of Tech’s recruitingclass who entered school inJanuary. Walton did not getto play at the rover positionafter his move, but he did geta lot of valuable work at theposition that should pay offthis spring. Griffin has hadhighly successful high schooland junior college careers,but must adjust to the Techsystem.

“My goal is to get theseplayers better experienceand develop an order amongthem,” says Jim Cavanaugh,who coaches the Hokies’rovers. “Crawford’s gameexperience from last seasonshould make him a differentplayer, and Walton’s practiceexperience should help makehim better. We will giveGriffin as many reps as wecan to see what he can do.

“As for the order,”Cavanaugh says. “How it

Vinnie Burns


No.Name vl Pos B’date Ht. Wt. Cl. Hometown High School H.S. Coach83 Nathaniel Adibi 3 DE 1/25/81 6-3 255 r-Sr. Hampton, Va. Phoebus Bill Dee

Jesse Allen - FB 10/22/83 6-0 241 r-Fr. Monson, Mass. Pathfinder Regional Chris Pope42 James Anderson 1 LB 9/26/83 6-2 217 r-So. Chesapeake, Va. Deep Creek David Cox45 Mikal Baaqee 2 LB 12/20/81 5-10 227 r-Jr. Columbia, Md. DeMatha Bill McGregor

Mason Baggett - OT 8/16/83 6-1 255 Fr. Richmond, Va. James River Greg DeFrancescoKofi Boateng - CB 7/19/83 5-8 183 Jr. Knoxville, Tenn. Austin East Richard GlasperJoe Brockmeyer - FB 10/6/83 6-2 220 So. Pasadena, Md. Northeast Mike Cotham

96 Noland Burchette - DE 3/23/83 6-2 240 r-Fr. Richmond, Va. Highland Springs Scott Burton51 Chris Burnett - OG 11/2/83 6-1 284 r-Fr. Blue Ridge, Va. Liberty-Bedford Scott Abell38 Vinnie Burns 1 P 2/2/82 5-11 202 r-Jr. New Orleans, La. St. Augustine Anthony Biagas

61 Reggie Butler - OT 8/21/82 6-6 333 So. Keswick, Va. Monticello Brud Bicknell44 John Candelas - TB 4/21/83 6-0 199 So. Blacksburg, Va. Blacksburg Mike Crist37 Steve Canter - FB 2/15/81 6-0 232 r-Sr. Virginia Beach, Va. Kempsville John Bowles57 Tripp Carroll - OT 9/18/84 6-4 306 Fr. Charlotte, N.C. Andrew Jackson (Fla.) Gil Carroll

Chris Ceasar - FL 12/20/82 5-10 165 r-Fr. Delray Beach, Fla. Spanish River Bill Bretherick16 Chris Clifton 1 SE 10/27/82 6-4 197 r-So. Chesapeake, Va. Deep Creek David Cox99 Cols Colas 3 DE 5/16/80 6-0 226 r-Sr. Plantation, Fla. South Plantation Dan Margurit62 Travis Conway 1 DS 6/3/82 6-5 240 r-Jr. Richmond, Va. J.R. Tucker Rusty Curle33 Chad Cooper 2 LB 6/10/81 6-2 211 r-Jr. Herndon, Va. Oakton Pete Bendorf21 Michael Crawford 3 ROV 2/20/81 5-11 209 r-Sr. Baltimore, Md. Patterson Roger Wrenn

Luke Dales - FB 1/26/83 5-11 229 r-Fr. Grundy, Va. Grundy Greg Rowe31 Mike Daniels 2 FS 9/18/81 6-0 205 r-Jr. Fairfax, Va. Fairfax Tom Verbanic95 Jim Davis@ 3 DE 10/4/81 6-3 255 Sr. Highland Springs, Va. Highland Springs Randy Stokes79 Jon Dunn 2 OT 12/12/81 6-7 343 r-Jr. Virginia Beach, Va. Tallwood Thad Harold43 Doug Easlick 2 FB 12/4/80 5-11 238 r-Sr. Marlton, N.J. Cherokee John Scott

Rashad Ferebee - OG 3/18/84 5-8 272 So. Norfolk, Va. Granby Dave Hudack58 Andrew Fleck - C 10/11/82 6-3 275 r-Fr. Edmond, Okla. Sante Fe Brian Kelly65 Brandon Frye - OT 1/23/83 6-4 268 r-Fr. Myrtle Beach, S.C. Myrtle Beach Scott Early

8 Vincent Fuller 2 CB 8/3/82 6-1 181 r-Jr. Baltimore, Md. Woodlawn Reggie White60 Jacob Gibson 2 OT/OG 1/29/81 6-4 306 r-Sr. Rocky Mount, Va. Franklin County Jerry Little

82 Lance Goff - FL 3/29/82 5-11 202 r-Sr. Wytheville, Va. George Wythe Larry Russell22 Corey Gordon$ - FS 6/9/84 6-3 207 Fr. Gainesville, Fla. Gainesville High Rick Swain77 Brandon Gore - OT 11/7/83 6-5 328 r-Fr. Warrenton, Va. Liberty Joe Trabucco

1 Eric Green 2 CB 3/16/82 5-11 190 r-Jr. Clewiston, Fla. Clewiston Al Morrell28 James Griffin‡ - ROV 12/28/81 6-1 193 Jr. Memphis, Tenn. East Wayne Randall64 Jake Grove 3 C 1/22/80 6-3 300 r-Sr. Forest, Va. Jefferson Forest Ed Landis

Patrick Hackley-Hough - LB 4/9/84 6-0 195 So. Herndon, Va. Oakton Pete Bendorf4 DeAngelo Hall 2 CB/WR 11/19/83 5-11 198 Jr. Chesapeake, Va. Deep Creek David Cox

27 Justin Hamilton 1 FL 9/17/82 6-3 209 r-So. Clintwood, Va. Clintwood Bob MeadeRyan Hash - CB 3/27/83 5-9 172 So. Springfield, Va. Robert E. Lee Jerry Pannoni

82 Brenden Hill - SE 7/7/84 6-1 186 r-Fr. Newport News, Va. Warwick Tommy Reamon75 Kevin Hilton - OL 10/13/83 6-1 263 r-So. Silver Spring, Md. Good Counsel Tom Kolar

Scott Hughes - FL 5/28/82 5-11 154 r-Jr. Radford, Va. Pulaski County Joel Hicks32 Cedric Humes 1 TB/FB 8/7/83 6-1 223 r-So. Virginia Beach, Va. Princess Anne Jeff Ballance20 Mike Imoh - TB 7/21/84 5-7 185 So. Fairfax, Va. Robinson Mark Bendorf12 Richard Johnson 2 FL 6/17/82 5-10 189 r-Jr. Baltimore, Md. Milford Mill Academy Reggie Brooks25 Kevin Jones 2 TB 8/21/82 6-0 209 Jr. Chester, Pa. Cardinal O’Hara George Stratts

Greg Kezmarsky - DE 10/1/83 6-3 236 So. Voorhees, N.J. Eastern Dan SpittalMichael Kibble - PK 12/30/82 5-8 147 So. Manassas, Va. Osbourn Park Mike Feldman

90 Jeff King 1 TE 2/19/83 6-5 256 r-So. Pulaski, Va. Pulaski County Joel Hicks

Guillaume Laffitte-Smith - FB 6/1/84 5-9 196 r-Fr. Oak Hill, Va. Oakton Pete Bendorf91 Jason Lallis 2 DT 2/4/82 6-0 250 r-Jr. Mitchellville, Md. DeMatha Bill McGregor

Ivan Larrymore - QB 1/4/84 6-0 204 So. St. Matthews, S.C. Calhoun County Chris Rumph14 Fred Lee§ - FL 3/10/83 5-8 186 r-Fr. Harrisburg, Pa. Bishop McDevitt Jeff Weachter53 Nick Leeson - LB/DS 10/29/82 6-1 235 r-Fr. Abingdon, Va. Abingdon Scott Allen

2003 Spring Roster


No. Name vl Pos B’date Ht. Wt. Cl. Hometown High School H.S. Coach56 Jonathan Lewis 1 DT 7/12/84 6-1 292 So. Richmond, Va. Varina Gary Chilcoat70 Kevin Lewis 2 DT 4/26/80 6-1 292 r-Jr. Richmond, Va. Varina Ed Bulheller88 Michael Malone - SE 3/9/84 6-3 202 r-Fr. Friendswood,Texas Friendswood Steve Vanmeter48 Brandon Manning+ 2 LB 5/12/81 6-0 216 r-Jr. Harrisburg, Pa. Central Dauphin George Chaump52 Jimmy Martin@ 1 OT 10/19/82 6-5 283 So. Fairfax, Va. Chantilly Bob Herb

85 Jared Mazzetta 2 TE 6/4/81 6-4 260 r-Jr. Flemington, N.J. Hunterdon Central Jim Meert69 Danny McGrath - C 3/19/83 6-2 297 So. Herndon, Va. Herndon Tom Meier29 Brian McPherson - CB 5/11/84 5-10 190 r-Fr. Madison Heights, Va. Amherst County Mickey Crouch76 James Miller 2 OG 8/13/81 6-6 304 Jr. Pompano Beach, Fla. Ft. Lauderdale John Timmons97 Isaac Montgomery† - DT 3/3/82 6-4 297 r-Jr. Princeton, W. Va. Princeton Ted Sparado66 Will Montgomery - OG 2/13/83 6-4 298 r-So. Clifton, Va. Centreville Mike Skinner72 Jason Murphy 1 OG 8/7/82 6-2 296 r-So. Baltimore, Md. Edmondson Westside Pete Pompey

Jason Myers - FB 12/30/83 5-8 230 r-So. Clifton, Va. Centreville Mike SkinnerEllison Orcutt - OG 6/7/84 6-4 293 r-Fr. Mechanicsville, Va. Lee-Davis Richard McConnellBrandon Pace - PK 11/11/83 5-10 193 r-Fr. Virginia Beach, Va. Kellam Mike Dewitt

94 Chris Pannell - OL 12/27/82 6-4 274 r-So. Staunton, Va. Robert E. Lee David TibbsMike Parham - C 9/13/84 6-0 274 r-Fr. Petersburg, Va. Petersburg Remus James

80 Robert Parker - FL 3/10/84 6-1 207 r-Fr. Chesapeake, Va. Oscar Smith H.S. Bill Lyons89 Robert Peaslee 3 P 6/28/81 6-1 210 r-Sr. Pulaski, Va. Pulaski County Joel Hicks

Mike Perlozzo - TB 9/12/85 5-8 201 So. Athens, Pa. Athens Jack Young68 Robert Ramsey - C 4/13/82 6-3 307 r-Jr. Coraopolis, Pa. Montour Don Morgan

3 Bryan Randall 2 QB 8/16/83 6-0 222 Jr. Williamsburg, Va. Bruton Kyle NeveMatt Roan$ - TE 3/13/84 6-4 243 Fr. Dublin, Va. Pulaski County Joel Hicks

6 Vegas Robinson 2 LB 5/19/81 6-0 244 r-Sr. Chesapeake, Va. Deep Creek David CoxWinston Roett - QB 3/30/84 6-2 200 So. Vienna, Va. O’Connell Darrel Snyder

36 Aaron Rouse - LB 1/8/84 6-3 203 r-Fr. Virginia Beach, Va. First Colonial Sam Scarborough54 Bob Ruff - DE 9/23/82 6-1 231 Jr. McMurray, Pa. Peters Township Garry Cathell34 Antoine Rutherford - TB 10/1/83 5-10 197 r-Fr. Miramar, Fla. Chaminade Madonna Prep Mark Guandolo71 Tim Sandidge 1 DT 6/12/83 6-1 283 r-So. Madison Heights, Va. Amherst County Mickey Crouch23 Nic Schmitt - PK/P 1/5/84 6-1 242 So. Salem, Va. Salem Willis White81 Chris Shreve 1 SE 7/15/81 6-0 188 r-Sr. Mouth of Wilson, Va. Grayson County Bill Strong

Scott Sterrett - FL 7/27/83 6-0 192 r-Fr. Blacksburg, Va. Blacksburg Dave Crist55 Darryl Tapp 1 DE 9/13/84 6-1 246 So. Chesapeake, Va. Deep Creek David Cox

John Thibodeau - SE 9/7/82 6-0 173 r-So. Springfield, Va. Hayfield Roy Hill41 Jordan Trott 1 LB 6/26/83 6-4 245 r-So. Torrance, Calif. Loyola Steve Grady

5 Marcus Vick - QB 3/20/84 6-0 203 r-Fr. Newport News, Va. Warwick Tommy Reamon30 Cary Wade 1 CB 5/12/84 5-10 173 So. Fairfax, Va. Robinson Mark Bendorf24 D.J. Walton 1 ROV 10/19/82 5-9 200 r-So. Woodbridge, Va. C.D. Hylton Bill Brown49 Carter Warley 3 PK 2/14/80 5-11 198 r-Sr. Richmond, Va. Fork Union Mickey Sullivan40 Blake Warren 1 LB 10/10/82 6-3 232 r-So. Clifton, Va. Centreville Mike Skinner

Adrian White - FS 7/12/83 5-11 199 So. Ardmore, Pa. Harriton Hal Smith17 Garnell Wilds 3 CB 6/8/81 5-11 196 r-Sr. Tampa, Fla. Hillsborough Earl Garcia, Jr.19 Ernest Wilford@ 3 SE 1/14/79 6-4 221 r-Sr. Richmond, Va. Armstrong/Franklin Otis Brayboy98 Jimmy E. Williams‡ 1 DT 1/13/82 6-3 335 Sr. Memphis, Tenn. East Wayne Randall18 Jimmy F. Williams 1 FS 3/8/84 6-3 213 So. Hampton, Va. Bethel Tracy Parker

86 Keith Willis 3 TE 12/14/80 6-5 264 r-Sr. Norfolk, Va. Norview Carleton ThomasJ.D. Zeigler - LB 11/13/82 6-2 219 r-So. Oakton, Va. Oakton Pete Bendorf

$also attended Hargrave Military Academy (Va.); @also attended Fork Union Military Academy (Va.);+attended the U.S. Air Force Academy Prep School; § also attended Milford (Conn.) Prep‡ also attended Pasadena City College (Calif.); † transferred from UNC


During his 16 seasons at thehelm, Frank Beamer has guidedthe Virginia Tech footballprogram to unprecedentedsuccess with 10 straight bowlappearances, three BIG EASTConference titles, a trip to thenational championship gameand an average of nine wins peryear since the beginning of the1993 season.

Winning has been just partof the success story for Beamer,one of the nation’s mostrespected and popularcollegiate football coaches. Heand his staff have developed awide-spread reputation forgetting the most out of theirplayers. That reputation hasnever been more warrantedthan in recent seasons.

In 2000, Beamer and hisstaff directed Tech to an 11-1record after opening the seasonwith eight new starters ondefense and an all new lineup inthe kicking game. During the2001 season, the Hokies postedan 8-4 record and appeared inthe Top 20 every week despitehaving to fill four offensive linespots, the quarterback jobvacated by sensational under-classman Michael Vick and thetailback spot left open when All-America running back LeeSuggs was lost for the seasonwith an injury. This past year,the Hokies were 10-4 despiteattacking one of their toughestschedules ever with a youngteam that featured all-newstarters at the defensive tackle,inside linebacker and roverpositions and major questionsat quarterback and widereceiver.

Under Beamer, Virginia Techis one of just seven Division I-Ateams to receive a bowl bideach of the last 10 years,including this year’s DiamondWalnut San Francisco Bowl. In2000, the Hokies earned theirfirst Toyota Gator Bowlchampionship with animpressive 41-20 victory overClemson. A spot in the NokiaSugar Bowl to play No. 1 FloridaState for the nationalchampionship focused

widespread attention on VirginiaTech and its football programfollowing the 1999 season. Andalthough the Hokies fell short intheir bid for the national title,they proved that they belongamong the top teams in thecollege ranks.

For his part in the Hokies’magical 1999 season, Beamerearned eight national coach ofthe year awards. He was namedthe Bobby Dodd Coach of theYear, the GTE Coach of theYear, the Eddie RobinsonCoach of the Year, the Paul“Bear” Bryant Coach of the Year,the Associated Press Coach ofthe Year, the Walter CampFootball Foundation/Street &Smith’s Coach of the Year, theMaxwell Football Club Coach ofthe Year and the Woody HayesCoach of the Year. He also wasnamed the BIG EASTConference Coach of the Yearfor the third time.

There have been plenty ofother accolades for the Hokies’coach. In a survey of Division I-A

football coaches conducted byBloomburg News in the fall of2000, Beamer was named thebest coach a school could hireto run its football program. InJanuary 2001, he was honoredas the NCAA Coach of theYear by The Pigskin Club ofWashington, D.C. In May ofthat year, an on-linenewspaper named him thebest coach currently in thecollege football ranks becauseof his ability to place Techamong the nation’s elite year inand year out. He has beenvoted the Virginia Division ICoach of the Year by the statesports information directorsfour times in the past sevenyears, including last season.

Following consecutive 10-2seasons in 1995 and 1996,Beamer was voted BIG EASTConference Coach of the Yearby the league coaches. He wasone of five finalists in thevoting for the 1995 NationalCoach of the Year. In 1996, TheSporting News queried writers

from around the country andasked them to rate thecoaches in variousconferences. In the BIG EAST,those writers rated FrankBeamer the best coach ongame day, the best in gamepreparation, the best as amotivator, the best as ateacher, the best in big gamesand the best overall. In 1999,The Sporting News ranked thenation’s top coaches in termsof their ability to get the mostout of their players. Beamerwas picked No. 9 in Division I-A. This year marked the fourthtime in five years TSN hasrated the Tech coach topsamong BIG EAST headcoaches. The publication hasalso ranked the Hokies’ footballcoaching staff as the best inthe conference four timesduring that span. Street &Smith’s College Football 2002rates Beamer as the toprecruiter in the BIG EAST.

The rise of the Tech footballprogram has made Beamer a

One of the Nation’s Most Respected CoachesFrank Beamer


man in demand. It has openeddoors to places he may neverhave dreamed of as a youngstergrowing up in SouthwestVirginia.

In September 2000, Beamerwas invited to the White Housewhere he joined a select groupthat stood in the Rose Gardenbehind then-President BillClinton as he made remarks onthe Conservation andReinvestment Act. Beamer wasone of the keynote speakers atthe American Football CoachesAssociation Convention in 2000,and in April 2001 he joinedformer Prime Minister of Great

Britain, Lady MargaretThatcher, as one of thefeatured speakers atSUCCESS 2001, one of thenation’s most popular businessseminars.

Beamer’s success has alsomade him a much sought-aftercoach. In recent years, he hasbeen pursued by numerousother schools and has drawninterest from professionalfootball teams. But in the end,his loyalty has remained withthe Hokies.

Beamer has always putVirginia Tech first — ever sincehe starred as a defensive back

for the Hokies in hisundergraduate days in the late1960s, and surely throughouthis 16 years as head coach ofthe Hokies. He has given theTech program a sense ofstability enjoyed by just ahandful of other Division I-Aschools. Only three otheractive Division I-A headcoaches have been at theircurrent school as long asBeamer.

In 1990, Beamer received anew contract and a substantialpay raise. He refused the raise,however, until such time that allclassified and faculty

employees of the universitycould have the sameopportunity for pay raises. Moststate salaries had been frozenat the time.

Another indication ofBeamer’s love for the universitycame on the night he wasinducted into The Virginia TechSports Hall of Fame in 1997.He called it the biggest honorof his entire career. With theinduction, he became the firstactive coach at the universityto be honored in that fashion.

Beamer’s overall record atTech now stands at 117-69-2.He became Tech’s winningestfootball coach during the 1997campaign. Counting six yearsas head coach at Murray Stateprior to joining the Hokies,Beamer’s overall 22-yearrecord is 159-92-4. That recordranks him sixth among activeDivision I-A coaches in wins.

The 56-year-old Beamer,first alumnus to guide theHokies since the 1940s, tookover the Tech reins from BillDooley in January 1987. Hebegan work a few days afterthe Hokies had beaten NorthCarolina State in the PeachBowl. It took a while for him toget the Hokies moving in theright direction because thefootball program was hit withNCAA sanctions at the time.

But everything cametogether in the 1990s. TheTechmen finished 9-3 in 1993after beating Indiana, 45-20, ina wild Independence Bowlgame. Tech followed up with an8-4 season in 1994, losing toTennessee, 45-23, in the GatorBowl.

The Tech teams in 1995and 1996 were among the bestin school history. The 1995team swept the BIG EASTConference championshipoutright and the 1996 club tiedfor the title with Syracuse andMiami.

The 1995 team was 9-2during the regular season andthen came up with a stirring28-10 victory over Texas in theSugar Bowl. The 1996 teamwent 10-1 during the regularseason and lost to powerfulNebraska, 41-21, in theOrange Bowl after giving theCornhuskers a fierce battle forthree quarters.

The Hokies fell to 7-5 in1997 and were beaten badly

Continued

National Coach of the Year

Coach Frank Beamer was tabbed the consensus national footballcoach of the year for 1999 after leading the Hokies to an 11-0regular season and a berth in the national championship game.


PERSONAL:Born: 10/18/46, Mt. Airy, N.C.Hometown: Hillsville, Va.Wife: former Cheryl OakleyChildren: Shane, Casey

EDUCATION:High School: Hillsville (1965)College: Virginia Tech (1969)Postgraduate: Radford University (1972)

PLAYING EXPERIENCE:Virginia Tech (1966-68)

COACHING EXPERIENCE:1972 Graduate Assistant, Maryland1973-76 Assistant Coach, The Citadel1977-78 Defensive Coordinator, The Citadel1979-80 Defensive Coordinator, Murray State1981-86 Head Coach, Murray State

1981 (8-3)1982 (4-7)1983 (7-4)1984 (9-2)1985 (7-3-1)1986 (7-4-1) Ohio Valley co-champion

Record at Murray State: 42-23-2

1987- Head Coach, Virginia Tech1987 (2-9)1988 (3-8)1989 (6-4-1)1990 (6-5)1991 (5-6)1992 (2-8-1)1993 (9-3) Independence Bowl champion1994 (8-4) Gator Bowl1995 (10-2) BIG EAST, Sugar Bowl champion1996 (10-2) BIG EAST co-champion, Orange Bowl1997 (7-5) Gator Bowl1998 (9-3) Music City Bowl champion1999 (11-1) BIG EAST champion, Sugar Bowl2000 (11-1) Gator Bowl champion2001 (8-4) Gator Bowl2002 (10-4) San Francisco Bowl

Record at Virginia Tech: 117-69-2Overall head coaching record: 159-92-4

BOWL EXPERIENCE:Player

1966 Liberty (Virginia Tech vs. Miami)1968 Liberty (Virginia Tech vs. Mississippi)

Coach1993 Independence (Virginia Tech vs. Indiana)1994 Gator (Virginia Tech vs. Tennessee)1995 Sugar (Virginia Tech vs. Texas)1996 Orange (Virginia Tech vs. Nebraska)1997 Gator (Virginia Tech vs. North Carolina)1998 Music City (Virginia Tech vs. Alabama)1999 Sugar (Virginia Tech vs. Florida State)2000 Gator (Virginia Tech vs. Clemson)2001 Gator (Virginia Tech vs. Florida State)2002 San Francisco (Virginia Tech vs. Air Force)

by North Carolina in the GatorBowl, 42-3. But they came rightback with a 9-3 mark in 1998that included an impressive 38-7 victory over Alabama in theinaugural Music City Bowl inNashville, Tenn.

The two winningestseasons in school historyfollowed in 1999 and 2000 withthe Hokies posting back-to-back 11-1 records. Techregistered its first-ever 11-0regular-season record in ’99before losing its nationalchampionship battle with FSU.

In 2000, the Hokies’ onlyblemish was a loss at Miami inthe ninth game of the season.Both seasons, Tech climbed ashigh as No. 2 in TheAssociated Press poll, finishingNo. 2 in ’99 and No. 6 in 2000.The Hokies climbed as high asNo. 5 in the 2001 AP poll andfinished 18th. This pastseason, Tech was ranked ashigh as No. 3 in the AP polland posted consecutive winsover nationally-ranked LSU(14th), Marshall (16th) andTexas A&M (19th). The Hokiesfinished the 2002 seasonranked 18th by AP and 14th byESPN/USA Today.

Beamer’s early Tech teamsalso registered many excitingvictories. One of the mostimpressive came in 1990 whenthe Hokies capped the yearwith a 38-13 victory over arch-rival Virginia before a crowd of54,157, which at the time wasthe largest ever to see acollege football game in theCommonwealth of Virginia.During the 1989 season, Tech

knocked off ninth-ranked WestVirginia and star quarterbackMajor Harris, 12-10, inMorgantown.

During his undergraduatedays at Tech, Beamer startedthree years as a cornerbackand played on the Hokies’ 1966and 1968 Liberty Bowl teams.He received a B.S. indistributive education from Techin 1969 and a master’s inguidance from Radford in 1972.Then came the start of theBeamer coaching career.

He began as an assistant atRadford High School from 1969through 1971. Then after oneseason as a graduate assistantat the University of Maryland,he went to The Citadel wherehe worked five seasons underBobby Ross and one yearunder Art Baker. His last twoyears at The Citadel, Beamerwas the defensive coordinator.

In 1979, Beamer went toMurray State as the defensivecoordinator under MikeGottfried. He was named headcoach at Murray State in 1981and went on to compile a six-year record of 42 wins, 23losses and two ties.

The Tech coach was born inMt. Airy, N.C., and grew up inHillsville, Va. At Hillsville High,he earned 11 varsity letters asa three-sport athlete in football,basketball and baseball.

Beamer is married to theformer Cheryl Oakley ofRichmond, Va. They have twochildren, Shane, a formermember of his dad’s footballteam at Tech and now agraduate assistant atTennessee; and daughterCasey, a senior at VirginiaTech.

Coach Beamer

Continued

Shane, Cheryl,Frank and Casey

Beamer.

Beamer’s Profile


At the start of this season,fans and critics alike predicteda “rebuilding” year for theVirginia Tech football team.Having lost several key playersfrom last year’s 8-4 season,the Hokies had severalproblem areas to address. Thequarterback position was ahuge unknown with the tornACL of returning starter GrantNoel and the inexperience ofsophomore backup BryanRandall. The wide receiverpositions were also a bigquestion mark, with thegraduation of All-AmericanAndré Davis. The defense wascharacterized by its youth,particularly at the defensivetackle and linebacker spots,which lost All-Americans DavidPugh and Ben Taylor. Withexpectations for Techsurrounded by uncertainty,predicted records of 7-6 or 6-7were tossed around.

Yet Tech silenced thecritics early on, winning thefirst eight games of theseason, including threeconsecutive victories overnationally ranked opponents,and climbing up the nationalpolls. With Noel sidelined byhis knee injury, Randallemerged as one of the mostefficient quarterbacks in thenation and redshirt juniorErnest Wilford became areliable target for Randall’spasses. The defense, despiteits relative inexperience, usedits speed and strength tobecome a force.

As if that weren’t enoughfor the Hokie faithful, Tech’srunning game remained aforce to be reckoned with, ledby the performance of tailbacktandem Lee Suggs and KevinJones. Suggs, returning from aknee injury that had kept himon the sidelines in 2001,amassed over 1,200 rushingyards and set an NCAA recordfor consecutive games withtouchdowns scored (27).Jones, 2001 BIG EAST Rookieof the Year, added over 800yards on the ground, despitemissing seven quarters ofaction with a hamstring injury.

The Hokies started theseason on Aug. 25 with ahome date against ArkansasState in the Hispanic CollegeFund Football Classic. Tech,ranked 16th in the nation,scored in every wayimaginable, including onspecial teams and defense.With nine touchdowns comingfrom seven different players,the Hokies rolled over theIndians by a score of 63-7,giving coach Frank Beamer his150th career win. SophomoreDeAngelo Hall was named theplayer of the game afterscoring his first two careertouchdowns, one on specialteams (a 69-yard punt return)and one on defense (a 49-yardinterception return).

Despite the Hokies’dominance in the homeopener, their first test of theseason would come against14th-ranked LSU. Manywondered how Tech wouldhold up against the defendingSEC champions. The Hokiesanswered with a convincing26-8 victory, relying on thestrength of the defensive andspecial teams units. Defensive

end Jim Davis recorded threesacks on the day, while theHokies’ defense limited LSU toonly 214 offensive yards.Redshirt sophomore JasonLallis and redshirt freshmanJustin Hamilton each blockeda punt, resulting in nine pointsfor the Hokies (a touchdownand a safety).

Tech couldn’t rest on itslaurels after the LSU victory,with 16th-ranked Marshallcoming into Lane Stadium/Worsham Field for a Thursdaynight game. The ThunderingHerd, led by Heisman hopefulquarterback Byron Leftwich,hoped to snatch a victory fromthe toughest opponent on theirschedule. Instead, the duo ofSuggs and Jones combinedfor 324 yards on the groundand five touchdowns en routeto a 47-21 victory. The gamewas not as close as the finalscore indicated, as the Hokiesled 33-0 in the fourth quarterbefore allowing Marshall toscore. Leftwich managed over400 passing yards (including197 in the final period), but itwas not enough to knock offTech.

Following a week off, Techwas ready for its first roadgame of the season. With twoconsecutive wins againstranked opponents under theirbelt, the Hokies were ready foranother tough challengeagainst No. 19 Texas A&M andits famed defensive unit, the“Wrecking Crew.” But it was theTech defense that stole theshow, as the Hokies limited theAggies to 156 yards totaloffense, including a mere 38yards on the ground. NathanielAdibi recorded three sacks,while free safety Willie Pile hadan interception and a fumblereturn to earn the BronkoNagurski National DefensivePlayer of the Week award. Techwon 13-3, as it became the firstnon-conference team to leaveKyle Field with a victory duringA&M head coach R.C. Slocum’s14-year tenure.

By the time the Hokiesplayed Western Michigan inKalamazoo, they had climbed toNo. 5 in the national rankings.Determined not to have aletdown game against theBroncos, Tech played tough andshut out Western Michigan forthe second straight year,winning 30-0. Randall, in histhird start at quarterback,amassed 234 yards of totaloffense (194 passing), while theHokies’ defense limited theBroncos to 35 yards on theground.

Tech’s first BIG EASTmatch-up of the season camein the sixth game, as the fourth-ranked Hokies traveled toBoston College on Oct. 10. TheEagles became the first team ofthe season to score a first halftouchdown against the Hokies,as Jamal Burke scored on an83-yard punt return. BostonCollege gave Tech its closestgame of the early season, butthe tailback duo of Suggs andJones was again unstoppable,as both collected over 100yards rushing for the secondtime in 2002. Suggs alsobecame the BIG EAST careerleader in rushing touchdownswith 40. Tech ended up winning28-23, and earned a No. 3

Hokies Cap Season with a Win in the San Francisco Bowl2002 Season Review

Jake Grove earned All-America consideration from The Sporting News.


national ranking.After a month away from

the friendly confines of LaneStadium/Worsham Field, theHokies returned to Blacksburgfor their Homecoming gameagainst Rutgers. The groundattack was once again a factorfor Tech, with the Hokiesgathering 342 yards rushing,including 132 yards for Jonesand a career-high 197 yardsfor Suggs. Despite trailing Tech21-0 at the end of the firstquarter, the Scarlet Knightscame within two touchdownsof the Hokies in the thirdperiod. Hall sealed the Techvictory in the fourth quarter byreturning a Rutgers punt 51yards for a touchdown, as theHokies defeated the Knights,35-14.

The eighth game of theseason pitted Tech againstconference opponent Templein another home contest. TheHokies had problems keepingcontrol of the ball, committingfour turnovers, but a strongdefensive effort helped Techstay on top throughout thegame. The Owls were held toonly 39 yards rushing, whileredshirt sophomore Vincent

Fuller had a pair ofinterceptions in the red zone tostop two Temple scoringdrives. The Hokies topped theOwls, 20-10, for their thirdconference win of the season.

The game againstPittsburgh proved to be acrucial one for the Hokies. Notonly were both teamsundefeated in the BIG EAST,but Tech was anxious toavenge its 38-7 loss to thePanthers in 2001. The Hokiestook an early 14-0 lead, butPittsburgh was able to score21 unanswered points in thesecond half to leaveBlacksburg with a 28-21victory. Suggs netted 128yards and two touchdowns onthe ground for the Hokies, butJones left the game with onlyfour yards and a touchdownafter sustaining a hamstringinjury on his second carry ofthe game.

Tech looked to get backinto the win column as ittraveled to Syracuse for gameNo. 10. It was a record-settingday for the Hokies, as Randallpassed for a BIG EAST record504 yards and set a Techsingle-game record with five

touchdown passes. Widereceiver Ernest Wilford alsofound his way into the recordbooks, setting a new schooland BIG EAST mark with 279yards receiving and setting anew school record with fourtouchdown receptions. Ondefense, Garnell Wilds postedthree interceptions for theHokies, tying a school andconference mark. Still, theHokies were forced into triple-overtime against theOrangemen and fell shortagainst Syracuse, 50-42, forthe second consecutive loss ofthe season.

The Hokies had a week offbefore facing their next BIGEAST opponent, West Virginia,in Blacksburg. Again, Tech hadto battle a strong conferencefoe. Suggs set a new Division Irecord for consecutive gameswith a touchdown with his 28-yard trot into the end zone inthe opening period. TheMountaineers took a 14-7 leadin the second quarter andnever let go. The Hokies cameas close as three points in thefinal minutes of the game, buta Randall interception in theend zone with just secondsremaining on the clock sealedthe 21-18 West Virginia victory.

Tech went into its finalhome game, a match-up within-state rival Virginia, hungryfor another win. The Hokieswould not be disappointed, asthey fought through winds of20-30 miles per hour andintermittent snow squalls todefeat the Cavaliers, 21-9. TheTech defense suppressed theeffectiveness of ACC Player ofthe Year Matt Schaub, limitingthe quarterback to only 43yards passing, and Cols Colasbecame the third Techdefensive end of the season torecord three sacks in a game.

The Hokies’ final game ofthe regular season wasperhaps their toughest, as theyheaded to Miami to play thetop-ranked and undefeatedHurricanes. Miami tookadvantage of three early Techturnovers and scored on six ofits first seven possessions. TheHokies fell behind by as muchas 28 points in the thirdquarter, but kept making playsto get back into the game. A96-yard interception return byPile set up 16 straight points byTech, but the Hurricanes

proved to be too much for theHokies, as they triumphed 56-45. Randall passed for 165yards and added 132 on theground in the losing effort,while Suggs found the endzone for three touchdowns.

With a 9-4 record followingregular season action, theHokies made their 10thconsecutive postseason bowlappearance, meeting the AirForce Academy Falcons in theinaugural Diamond WalnutSan Francisco Bowl. Tech wasone of only seven teams in thenation to advance topostseason bowls in each ofthe last 10 years.

At Pacific Bell Park in SanFrancisco, Calif., the Falconsjumped out to a 10-0 lead overthe Hokies less than eightminutes into the game.However, the Hokiesanswered back with a 16-yardtouchdown run by Lee Suggsand a 23-yard field goal byCarter Warley to make it a tiegame at the half. After thebreak, Suggs supplied a one-yard score while Warley addeda 37-yard field goal as Techtook the lead for good. TheHokies survived a late push bythe Falcons with the help oftwo huge defensive plays byRonyell Whitaker to notch a20-13 win over Air Force. TheFalcons led the Hokies in totalyards and doubled theirrushing yards, but it was notenough to fend off theoffensive efforts of Randall,the game’s offensive MVP whocompleted 18 of 23 passes for177 yards.

With the win over the AirForce Academy, the Hokiesfinished the season 10-4,notching the sixth 10-winseason in the program’shistory. The 2002 seniorsaveraged 10 wins per seasonand went out as thewinningest class in VirginiaTech football history with 40victories since their arrival atTech. The Hokies finished theseason ranked in the top 25nationally for rushing offense,scoring defense and puntreturns. With their end-of-the-season ranking in theAssociated Press Top 25Football Poll, the Hokies heldon to the second-longestactive consecutiveappearance streak, at 70weeks.

San Francisco Bowl:

Virginia Tech 20, Air Force 13

Individual LeadersRushing – AF, Butler 17-

75, Harridge 18-70, Palmer4-22, Ward 2-20; VT, Suggs19-70, K. Jones 11-35,Easlick 2-16, Randall 8(-20).

Passing – AF, Harridge4-19-2-91; VT, Randall 18-23-0-177.

Receiving – AF, Park 1-47, Waller 1-20, Strecker 1-18, Heier 1-6; VT, Wilford 5-50, Witten 4-48, Parham 4-35, K. Jones 2-7, Willis 1-20,Easlick 1-10, Hamilton 1-7.

Team Stats AF VTFirst downs 17 21Rushes-yds. 53-227 40-101Passing yds. 91 177Return yds. 22 30Passes 4-19-2 18-23-0Punts-avg. 3-31 3-40Fumbles-lost 1-0 2-1Penalties-yds 7-73 3-25KO ret.-yds. 5-82 3-52Interceptions-yds 0-0 2-30Time of poss. 30:25 29:353rd downs 6 of 17 3 of 114th downs 4 of 5 1 of 2Sacks by 2-19 0-0

Dec. 31, 2002 • San Francisco, Calif. • Pacific Bell ParkAttendance: 25,966

Air Force 10 0 0 3 - 13Virginia Tech 7 3 7 3 - 20

AF (12:00 re 1st) – Ward 15 run (Ashcroft kick)AF (7:36 re 1st) – Ashcroft 45 FGVT (2:26 re 1st) – Suggs 16 run (Warley kick)VT (0:33 re 2nd) – Warley 23 FGVT (4:55 re 3rd) – Suggs 1 run (Warley kick)AF (9:58 re 4th) – Ashcroft 21 FGVT (4:11 re 4th) – Warley 37 FG


Rushes.............. 39 McGAHEE, Willis, at Miami (Dec 07, 2002)Yards Rushing....... 205 McGAHEE, Willis, at Miami (Dec 07, 2002)TD Rushes........... 6 McGAHEE, Willis, at Miami (Dec 07, 2002)Long Rush........... 53 MIREE,Brandon, vs Pittsburgh (Nov 02, 2002)Pass attempts....... 49 LEFTWICH, Byron, vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)Pass completions.... 31 LEFTWICH, Byron, vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)Yards Passing....... 406 LEFTWICH, Byron, vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)TD Passes........... 3 LEFTWICH, Byron, vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)

RUTHERFORD,Rod, vs Pittsburgh (Nov 02, 2002)Long Pass........... 73 Jacobs, Elliot, vs Arkansas State (Aug 25, 2002)Receptions.......... 11 JONES, Curtis, vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)Yards Receiving..... 229 TYREE, David, at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)TD Receptions....... 3 FITZGERALD,L., vs Pittsburgh (Nov 02, 2002)Long Reception...... 73 Cox, Mike, vs Arkansas State (Aug 25, 2002)Field Goals......... 3 BARBER, Collin, at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Long Field Goal..... 49 SCIORTINO, Sand, at Boston College (Oct 10, 2002)Punts............... 9 Alexander, Mike, vs Arkansas State (Aug 25, 2002)Punting Avg......... 49.0 HEAD, Curtis, vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)Long Punt........... 64 Scates, Cody, at Texas A&M (Sep 21, 2002)Long Punt Return.... 83 BURKE, Jamal, at Boston College (Oct 10, 2002)Long Kickoff Return. 83 BLACKMON, Will, at Boston College (Oct 10, 2002)Tackles............. 14 Bradie James, vs LSU (Sep 01, 2002)Sacks............... 3.0 HARRIOTT,Claude, vs Pittsburgh (Nov 02, 2002)Tackles For Loss.... 5.0 Warren, Ty, at Texas A&M (Sep 21, 2002)Interceptions....... 1 CARR, Tony, at Western Michigan (Sep 28, 2002)

FELDPAUSCH, J., at Western Michigan (Sep 28, 2002)HAW, Brandon, vs Rutgers (Oct 19, 2002)JACKSON, Yazid, vs Temple (Oct 26, 2002)THOMPSON, Lafto, vs Temple (Oct 26, 2002)COX,Torrie, vs Pittsburgh (Nov 02, 2002)McCLAIN, M., at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)GREGORY, Steven, at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)SCANLON, Rich, at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)KING, Brian, vs West Virginia (Nov 20, 2002)DAVIS, Willie, vs Virginia (Nov 30, 2002)

Rushes.............. 60 at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Yards Rushing....... 275 vs Pittsburgh (Nov 02, 2002)Yards Per Rush...... 6.2 vs Pittsburgh (Nov 02, 2002)TD Rushes........... 6 at Miami (Dec 07, 2002)Pass attempts....... 56 vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)Pass completions.... 36 vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)Yards Passing....... 442 vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)Yards Per Pass...... 14.3 at Miami (Dec 07, 2002)TD Passes........... 3 vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)

vs Pittsburgh (Nov 02, 2002)Total Plays......... 100 at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Total Offense....... 604 at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Yards Per Play...... 8.2 at Miami (Dec 07, 2002)Points.............. 56 at Miami (Dec 07, 2002)Sacks By............ 7 vs Pittsburgh (Nov 02, 2002)First Downs......... 29 at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Penalties........... 11 vs Rutgers (Oct 19, 2002)Penalty Yards....... 100 vs Rutgers (Oct 19, 2002)Turnovers........... 5 vs Arkansas State (Aug 25, 2002)Interceptions By.... 3 at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)

2002 Season Superlatives

Tech Individual Game Highs Opponent Individual Game Highs

Opponent Team Game Highs

Rushes.............. 26 Lee Suggs at Boston College (Oct 10, 2002)Yards Rushing....... 197 Lee Suggs vs Rutgers (Oct 19, 2002)TD Rushes........... 3 Kevin Jones vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)

Lee Suggs at Miami (Dec 07, 2002)Long Rush........... 67 Kevin Jones at Boston College (Oct 10, 2002)Pass attempts....... 35 Bryan Randall at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Pass completions.... 23 Bryan Randall at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Yards Passing....... 504 Bryan Randall at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)TD Passes........... 5 Bryan Randall at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Long Pass........... 87 Bryan Randall at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Receptions.......... 8 Ernest Wilford at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Yards Receiving..... 279 Ernest Wilford at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)TD Receptions....... 4 Ernest Wilford at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Long Reception...... 87 Ernest Wilford at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)

Keith Willis at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Field Goals......... 2 Carter Warley vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)

Carter Warley at Texas A&M (Sep 21, 2002)Nic Schmitt vs Temple (Oct 26, 2002)Carter Warley vs Air Force (Dec 31, 2002)

Long Field Goal..... 43 Carter Warley vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)Punts............... 9 Vinnie Burns vs LSU (Sep 01, 2002)Punting Avg......... 49.0 Vinnie Burns vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)Long Punt........... 58 Vinnie Burns vs LSU (Sep 01, 2002)Long Punt Return.... 71 DeAngelo Hall at Miami (Dec 07, 2002)Long Kickoff Return. 91 Richard Johnson at Miami (Dec 07, 2002)Tackles............. 17 Mikal Baaqee at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Sacks............... 3.0 Jim Davis vs LSU (Sep 01, 2002)

Nathaniel Adibi at Texas A&M (Sep 21, 2002)Cols Colas vs Virginia (Nov 30, 2002)

Tackles For Loss.... 4.0 Cols Colas at Western Michigan (Sep 28, 2002)Mikal Baaqee at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Nathaniel Adibi at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Cols Colas vs Virginia (Nov 30, 2002)

Interceptions....... 3 Garnell Wilds at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)

Rushes.............. 66 vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)Yards Rushing....... 395 vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)Yards Per Rush...... 7.0 vs Arkansas State (Aug 25, 2002)TD Rushes........... 6 vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)Pass attempts....... 35 at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Pass completions.... 23 at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Yards Passing....... 504 at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Yards Per Pass...... 14.4 at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)TD Passes........... 5 at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Total Plays......... 78 vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)Total Offense....... 559 at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Yards Per Play...... 9.3 at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Points.............. 63 vs Arkansas State (Aug 25, 2002)Sacks By............ 8 vs Rutgers (Oct 19, 2002)First Downs......... 28 vs Marshall (Sep 12, 2002)Penalties........... 15 at Boston College (Oct 10, 2002)Penalty Yards....... 96 at Boston College (Oct 10, 2002)Turnovers........... 5 at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)Interceptions By.... 3 at Boston College (Oct 10, 2002)

vs Temple (Oct 26, 2002)at Syracuse (Nov 09, 2002)

Tech Team Game Highs


TEAM STATISTICS VT OPPSCORING 429 263 Points Per Game 30.6 18.8FIRST DOWNS 274 230 Rushing 149 91 Passing 99 119 Penalty 26 20RUSHING YARDAGE 2974 1700 Yards gained rushing 3339 2157 Yards lost rushing 365 457 Rushing Attempts 659 495 Average Per Rush 4.5 3.4 Average Per Game 212.4 121.4 TDs Rushing 35 19PASSING YARDAGE 2229 2991 Att-Comp-Int 272-168-11 443-230-24 Average Per Pass 8.2 6.8 Average Per Catch 13.3 13.0 Average Per Game 159.2 213.6 TDs Passing 14 14TOTAL OFFENSE 5203 4691 Total Plays 931 938 Average Per Play 5.6 5.0 Average Per Game 371.6 335.1KICK RET: #-YARDS 33-677 60-1231PUNT RET: #-YARDS 41-572 30-338INT RET: #-YARDS 24-409 11-100KICK RETURN AVG 20.5 20.5PUNT RETURN AVG 14.0 11.3INT RETURN AVG 17.0 9.1FUMBLES-LOST 32-18 37-13PENALTIES-YARDS 88-744 105-901 Average Per Game 53.1 64.4PUNTS-YARDS 66-2592 79-2929 Average Per Punt 39.3 37.1 Net punt average 34.2 29.8TIME OF POSS./GAME 31:28 28:323RD-DOWN CONV. 69/181 71/205 3rd-Down Pct 38% 35%4TH-DOWN CONV. 7/15 9/24 4th-Down Pct 47% 38%SACKS BY-YARDS 42-281 37-224MISC YARDS 119 89TOUCHDOWNS SCORED 56 34FIELD GOALS-ATT. 12-23 9-15PAT-ATTEMPTS 51-53 28-30ATTENDANCE 506749 278137 Games/Avg Per Game 8/63344 5/55627

RUSHING GP Att Gain Loss Net Avg TD Long Avg/GLee Suggs 14 257 1375 50 1325 5.2 22 59 94.6Kevin Jones 13 160 902 31 871 5.4 9 67 67.0Bryan Randall 14 171 769 262 507 3.0 3 34 36.2Doug Easlick 14 19 96 4 92 4.8 0 17 6.6Cedric Humes 14 16 69 1 68 4.2 0 9 4.9Mike Imoh 5 10 43 5 38 3.8 0 18 7.6Josh Spence 9 4 26 0 26 6.5 0 9 2.9John Candelas 2 7 26 0 26 3.7 1 10 13.0Richard Johnson 13 3 22 0 22 7.3 0 13 1.7Will Hunt 3 1 11 0 11 11.0 0 11 3.7Grant Noel 5 1 0 2 -2 -2.0 0 0 -0.4TEAM 14 10 0 10 -10 -1.0 0 0 -0.7

Total 14 659 3339 365 2974 4.5 35 67 212.4Opponents 14 495 2157 457 1700 3.4 19 53 121.4

PASSING G Effic Att-Cmp-Int Pct Yds TD Lng Avg/GBryan Randall 14 143.09 248-158-11 63.7 2134 12 87 152.4Grant Noel 5 115.69 18-7-0 38.9 86 2 19 17.2Will Hunt 3 75.12 5-3-0 60.0 9 0 9 3.0TEAM 14 0.00 1-0-0 0.0 0 0 0 0.0

Total 14 139.50 272-168-11 61.8 2229 14 87 159.2Opponents 14 108.23 443-230-24 51.9 2991 14 73 213.6

Date Opponent W/L Score Attend.Aug 25, 2002 ARKANSAS STATE W 63-7 54,016Sep 01, 2002 #14 LSU W 26-8 65,049Sep 12, 2002 #16 MARSHALL W 47-21 65,049Sep 21, 2002 at #19 Texas A&M W 13-3 83,746Sep 28, 2002 at Western Michigan W 30-0 27,218Oct 10, 2002 at Boston College W 28-23 42,826Oct 19, 2002 RUTGERS W 35-14 64,907Oct 26, 2002 TEMPLE W 20-10 64,937Nov 02, 2002 PITTSBURGH L 21-28 64,971Nov 09, 2002 at Syracuse (OT) L 42-50 48,239Nov 20, 2002 WEST VIRGINIA L 18-21 62,723Nov 30, 2002 VIRGINIA W 21-9 65,097Dec 07, 2002 at #1 Miami L 45-56 76,108

Dec 31, 2002 vs Air Force W 20-13 25,966

SCORE BY QTRS 1st 2nd 3rd 4th OT Tot.Virginia Tech 129 115 83 95 7 429Opponents 47 51 75 75 15 263

Record Overall Home Away NeutralAll Games 10-4 6-2 3-2 1-0Conference 3-4 2-2 1-2 0-0Non-Conference 7-0 4-0 2-0 1-0

2002 Statistics

Tackles Sacks Pass Def Fumbles BlkdDEFENSIVE LEADERS GP Solo Ast Tot TFL/Yds No-Yds Int-Yds BrUp QBH Rcv-Yds FF Kick SafMikal Baaqee 13 68 44 112 12-50 3.5-28 1-25 5 8 . 1 . .Willie Pile 14 68 38 106 . . 4-171 5 . 2-31 2 . .Brandon Manning 14 37 38 75 5-14 1.0-6 . 2 1 1-0 . . .Vegas Robinson 11 54 17 71 3-5 . 3-16 . 3 2-4 1 . .Billy Hardee 14 40 20 60 3-3 . . 2 . 2-0 . . .Jonathan Lewis 14 33 23 56 7-23 2.0-12 . . 5 . . . .DeAngelo Hall 12 36 19 55 . . 4-124 12 . . 1 . .Nathaniel Adibi 14 37 18 55 15-72 9.0-61 . 2 16 . 3 1 .Mike Daniels 14 25 26 51 2-7 . . 2 . . 1 . .Cols Colas 14 34 17 51 19-74 9.0-48 . 1 24 . 3 . .Michael Crawford 13 31 18 49 4-25 2.0-18 . 2 . . 1 . .Kevin Lewis 11 25 24 49 5-15 1.0-8 . 1 6 1-0 1 . .Jason Lallis 12 24 24 48 4-32 2.0-27 . . 7 1-59 1 1 .James Anderson 14 28 20 48 3-9 1.5-8 . . 3 . 1 . .Ronyell Whitaker 12 28 19 47 1-1 . 1-56 6 . . 2 . .Jimmy F. Williams 14 29 17 46 1-1 . 1-9 1 . . . . .Garnell Wilds 14 27 17 44 . . 5-8 7 . 1-0 . . .Lamar Cobb 13 20 17 37 1-8 1.0-8 . . 12 . . . .Jim Davis 14 24 13 37 9-43 5.5-32 . 3 10 . 1 . .Tim Sandidge 13 13 17 30 5-28 4.0-25 . 3 3 1-0 . . .Vincent Fuller 14 16 7 23 1-10 0.5-10 4-0 6 . . 1 . .Darryl Tapp 14 9 12 21 . . . 1 3 . . . .Jordan Trott 13 11 8 19 . . . . 1 . . . .Jimmy E. Williams 5 6 12 18 . . . . . . . . .Jason Murphy 10 2 13 15 . . . . 1 . . . .Blake Warren 9 5 7 12 . . 1-0 . . . . . .Cary Wade 13 9 2 11 . . . . . . . . .Alex Markogiannakis 8 7 3 10 2-3 . . . 1 2-25 . . .D.J. Walton 14 7 3 10 . . . . . . . . .Kevin Jones 13 6 3 9 . . . . . . . . .Chad Cooper 13 2 5 7 . . . . 1 . . . .Jared Mazzetta 11 2 3 5 . . . . . . . . .Ken Keister 14 3 2 5 . . . . . . . . .Chris Pannell 2 1 3 4 . . . . . . . . .Chris Buie 1 1 3 4 . . . . . . . . .Josh Spence 9 2 2 4 . . . . . . . . .Bob Ruff 1 1 2 3 . . . . . . . . .Mike Imoh 5 1 1 2 . . . . . . . . .Bryan Randall 14 2 . 2 . . . . . . . . .Keith Willis 14 1 1 2 . . . . . . . . .Ernest Wilford 14 2 . 2 . . . . . . . 1 .Jon Mollerup 13 2 . 2 . . . . . . . . .Vinnie Burns 14 . 1 1 . . . . . . . . .Justin Hamilton 13 1 . 1 . . . . . . . 2 .Lance Goff 4 1 . 1 . . . . . . . . .Mark Costen 2 . 1 1 . . . . . . . . .Jeff King 14 . . . . . . . . . . 1 .TEAM 14 . . . . . . . . . . 1 2

Total 14 781 540 1321 102-423 42-281 24-409 61 105 13-119 20 7 2Opponents 14 539 550 1089 120-344 37-224 11-100 27 2 18-39 19 3 .


RECEIVING G No. Yds Avg TD Long Avg/GErnest Wilford 14 51 925 18.1 7 87 66.1Shawn Witten 14 25 306 12.2 1 34 21.9Terrell Parham 13 18 156 8.7 0 22 12.0Doug Easlick 14 16 118 7.4 1 32 8.4Richard Johnson 13 14 147 10.5 0 39 11.3Lee Suggs 14 11 126 11.5 2 30 9.0Keith Willis 14 8 188 23.5 1 87 13.4Cedric Humes 14 7 76 10.9 0 26 5.4Justin Hamilton 13 5 56 11.2 0 23 4.3Mike Imoh 5 4 28 7.0 1 19 5.6Kevin Jones 13 4 21 5.2 0 10 1.6Chris Shreve 10 2 26 13.0 0 19 2.6Jeff King 14 1 19 19.0 1 19 1.4Jared Mazzetta 11 1 19 19.0 0 19 1.7Josh Spence 9 1 18 18.0 0 18 2.0

Total 14 168 2229 13.3 14 87 159.2Opponents 14 230 2991 13.0 14 73 213.6

PUNT RETURNS No. Yds Avg TD LongDeAngelo Hall ..................... 22 352 16.0 2 71Richard Johnson ................. 14 100 7.1 0 20Justin Hamilton ...................... 2 46 23.0 0 0Jason Lallis ............................ 1 1 1.0 0 0Ernest Wilford ........................ 1 32 32.0 0 0Nathaniel Adibi ...................... 1 30 30.0 0 0Darryl Tapp ............................ 0 11 0.0 1 11

Total 41 572 14.0 3 71Opponents 30 338 11.3 1 83

INTERCEPTIONS No. Yds Avg TD LongGarnell Wilds ......................... 5 8 1.6 0 8DeAngelo Hall ....................... 4 124 31.0 1 49Willie Pile .............................. 4 171 42.8 1 96Vincent Fuller ......................... 4 0 0.0 0 0Vegas Robinson ..................... 3 16 5.3 0 8Ronyell Whitaker .................... 1 56 56.0 0 56Blake Warren .......................... 1 0 0.0 0 0Jimmy F. Williams .................. 1 9 9.0 0 9Mikal Baaqee ......................... 1 25 25.0 0 25

Total 24 409 17.0 2 96Opponents 11 100 9.1 0 38

KICK RETURNS No. Yds Avg TD LongRichard Johnson .................. 23 485 21.1 0 91Lee Suggs ............................. 5 132 26.4 0 37Justin Hamilton ..................... 2 34 17.0 0 19Doug Easlick .......................... 1 10 10.0 0 10DeAngelo Hall ....................... 1 0 0.0 0 0Cedric Humes ........................ 1 16 16.0 0 16

Total 33 677 20.5 0 91Opponents 60 1231 20.5 0 83

FUMBLE RETURNS No. Yds Avg TD LongAlex Markogiannakis ............. 1 25 25.0 1 25Willie Pile .............................. 1 31 31.0 0 31Jason Lallis ............................ 1 59 59.0 1 59Vegas Robinson ..................... 1 4 4.0 0 4

Total 4 119 29.8 2 59Opponents 3 39 13.0 0 22

SCORING TD FGs Kick Rush Rcv Pass DXP Saf PtsLee Suggs 24 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 144Carter Warley 0 9-15 36-37 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 63Kevin Jones 9 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 54Ernest Wilford 7 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 42Nic Schmitt 0 2-6 14-14 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 20DeAngelo Hall 3 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 18Bryan Randall 3 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1-3 0 0 18Darryl Tapp 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 6Alex Markogiannakis 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 6John Candelas 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 6Keith Willis 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 6Shawn Witten 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 6Mike Imoh 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 6Doug Easlick 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 6Jason Lallis 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 6Willie Pile 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 6Jeff King 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 6Jon Mollerup 0 1-2 1-2 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 4Richard Johnson 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 0-0 0 0 2TEAM 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 2 4

Total 56 12-23 51-53 0-0 1 1-3 0 2 429Opponents 34 9-15 28-30 1-2 1 1-2 0 0 263

TOTAL OFFENSE G Plays Rush Pass Total Avg/GBryan Randall 14 419 507 2134 2641 188.6Lee Suggs 14 257 1325 0 1325 94.6Kevin Jones 13 160 871 0 871 67.0Doug Easlick 14 19 92 0 92 6.6Grant Noel 5 19 -2 86 84 16.8Cedric Humes 14 16 68 0 68 4.9Mike Imoh 5 10 38 0 38 7.6Josh Spence 9 4 26 0 26 2.9John Candelas 2 7 26 0 26 13.0Richard Johnson 13 3 22 0 22 1.7Will Hunt 3 6 11 9 20 6.7TEAM 14 11 -10 0 -10 -0.7

Total 14 931 2974 2229 5203 371.6Opponents 14 938 1700 2991 4691 335.1

FIELD GOALS FGM-FGA Pct 01-19 20-29 30-39 40-49 50-99 Lg BlkCarter Warley 9-15 60.0 0-0 4-6 2-3 3-6 0-0 43 1Jon Mollerup 1-2 50.0 0-0 0-0 1-1 0-1 0-0 37 0Nic Schmitt 2-6 33.3 0-0 2-2 0-1 0-3 0-0 22 0

FG SEQUENCE Virginia Tech OpponentsArkansas State - -LSU (41) -Marshall (42),(43),40 21Texas A&M 21,(22),(26),22 (43)Western Michigan (37),42 33,49Boston College 41 37,(49)Rutgers 36 -Temple (21),42,(22) (36)Pittsburgh 42 28Syracuse 46,36 (30),(26),33,(38)West Virginia (34) -Virginia - (20)Miami (20) -Air Force 41,(23),(37) (45),(21)

Numbers in (parentheses) indicate field goal was made.

PUNTING No. Yds Avg Long TB FC I20 BlkdVinnie Burns 64 2591 40.5 58 8 7 22 0TEAM 2 1 0.5 1 0 0 0 2

Total 66 2592 39.3 58 8 7 22 2Opponents 79 2929 37.1 64 7 7 12 5

ALL PURPOSE G Rush Rec PR KOR IR Tot Avg/GLee Suggs 14 1325 126 0 132 0 1583 113.1Ernest Wilford 14 0 925 32 0 0 957 68.4Kevin Jones 13 871 21 0 0 0 892 68.6Richard Johnson 13 22 147 100 485 0 754 58.0Bryan Randall 14 507 0 0 0 0 507 36.2DeAngelo Hall 12 0 0 352 0 124 476 39.7Shawn Witten 14 0 306 0 0 0 306 21.9Doug Easlick 14 92 118 0 10 0 220 15.7Keith Willis 14 0 188 0 0 0 188 13.4Willie Pile 14 0 0 0 0 171 171 12.2Cedric Humes 14 68 76 0 16 0 160 11.4Terrell Parham 13 0 156 0 0 0 156 12.0Justin Hamilton 13 0 56 46 34 0 136 10.5Mike Imoh 5 38 28 0 0 0 66 13.2Ronyell Whitaker 12 0 0 0 0 56 56 4.7Josh Spence 9 26 18 0 0 0 44 4.9Nathaniel Adibi 14 0 0 30 0 0 30 2.1John Candelas 2 26 0 0 0 0 26 13.0Chris Shreve 10 0 26 0 0 0 26 2.6Mikal Baaqee 13 0 0 0 0 25 25 1.9Jeff King 14 0 19 0 0 0 19 1.4Jared Mazzetta 11 0 19 0 0 0 19 1.7Vegas Robinson 11 0 0 0 0 16 16 1.5Darryl Tapp 14 0 0 11 0 0 11 0.8Will Hunt 3 11 0 0 0 0 11 3.7Jimmy F. Williams 14 0 0 0 0 9 9 0.6Garnell Wilds 14 0 0 0 0 8 8 0.6Jason Lallis 12 0 0 1 0 0 1 0.1Grant Noel 5 -2 0 0 0 0 -2 -0.4TEAM 14 -10 0 0 0 0 -10 -0.7

Total 14 2974 2229 572 677 409 6861 490.1Opponents 14 1700 2991 338 1231 100 6360 454.3


BLACKSBURG, Va. —Virginia Tech scored 35points in the first quarteron the way to a 63-7season-opening victoryagainst Arkansas State inthe Hispanic College FundFootball Classic at LaneStadium/Worsham Field.

Sophomore DeAngeloHall scored two of Tech'sfirst three touchdowns,

A CLOSER LOOK• Virginia Tech's 56 points in the first half against Arkansas State

marked the most points in a half for a Tech squad during the modernera (since 1950). It also ranked as the second-highest point total in ahalf by a BIG EAST Conference team behind the 59 points scored byWest Virginia against Rutgers last season. The Hokies' 35 first-quarterpoints against the Indians tied modern day school and BIG EASTConference marks for points in a quarter.

• Tech's 63 points in the ASU game were the most points scored bythe Hokies in a season-opening game since Tech defeated RoanokeCollege 86-0 to open the 1905 season. The last time Tech scoredmore points in a game was a 77-27 win over Akron in 1995.

• Each of the Hokies' first four touchdowns against ASU werescored in a different manner. Tech scored on a punt return, a rushingplay, an interception and a pass play. The Hokies also had a fumblereturn for a TD later in the game. Special teams, offense and defenseeach contributed one of Tech's first three scores.

• Eleven Tech players made their first collegiate starts in theArkansas State game. The first-time starters on offense were guardJames Miller (Pompano Beach, Fla.), tackle Jon Dunn (VirginiaBeach, Va.), tight end Keith Willis (Norfolk, Va.) and fullback DougEaslick (Marlton, N.J.). Starting for the first time on defense weretackles Kevin Lewis (Richmond, Va.) and Jason Lallis (Mitchellville,Md.), linebackers Brandon Manning (Harrisburg, Pa.), VegasRobinson (Chesapeake, Va.) and Mikal Baaqee (Columbia, Md.),rover Michael Crawford (Baltimore, Md.) and cornerback VincentFuller (Baltimore, Md.).

Aug. 25, 2002 • Lane Stadium/Worsham FieldAttendance 54,016

Arkansas State 0 0 7 0 — 7Virginia Tech 35 21 7 0 — 63

VT (12:40 re 1st) — Hall 69 punt return (Warley kick)VT (9:47 re 1st) — Suggs 32 run (Warley kick)VT (6:05 re 1st) — Hall 49 interception return (Warley kick)VT (5:50 re 1st) — King 19 pass from Noel (Warley kick)VT (2:11 re 1st) — Jones 19 run (Warley kick)VT (12:14 re 2nd) — Randall 12 run (Warley kick)VT (9:50 re 2nd) — Lallis 59 fumble return (Warley kick)VT (5:43 re 2nd) — Imoh 19 pass from Randall (Warley kick)ASU (11:06 re 3rd) — Cox 73 pass from Jacobs (Neihouse kick)VT (7:02 re 3rd) — Randall 5 run (Warley kick)

Team Stats ASU VTFirst downs 10 21Rushes-yds. 33-24 41-288Passing yds. 203 99Return yds. 22 196Passes 14-27-1 11-18-0Punts-avg. 9-43 5-41Fumbles-lost 6-4 1-1Penalties-yds. 8-72 10-82Time of poss. 31:47 28:13Sacks by 1-16 1-8

Individual LeadersRushing — ASU, Smith 17-36, Stegall 6-12, Warren 4-(-4), Team

1-(-6), Jacobs 4-(-6), Miller 1-(-8); VT, Suggs 7-87, Humes 10-52,Randall 5-36, Jones 4-31, Imoh 4-22, Spence 3-21, Easlick 1-15,Candelas 5-15, Hunt 1-11, Noel 1-(-2).

Passing — ASU, Jacobs 9-16-0-177, Miller 5-11-1-26; VT,Randall 6-8-0-66, Hunt 3-5-0-9, Noel 2-5-0-24.

Receiving — ASU, Cox 5-120, Hickenbotham 2-39, Wood 2-17,Smith 2-13, Stegall 1-9, Mack 1-3, C. Walker 1-2; VT, Imoh 4-28, King1-19, Wilford 1-15, Willis 1-15, Witten 1-11, Hamilton 1-5, Easlick 1-5,Humes 1-1.

Game 1: Fast StartLeads To 63-7 Tech WinOver Arkansas State

returning a punt 69 yards forthe Hokies' first score andracing 49 yards with aninterception for the team'sthird TD. Tech's No. 2quarterback, Bryan Randall,accounted for threetouchdowns during the game,scoring on runs of 12 and 5yards and tossing a 19-yardtouchdown pass.

Defensively, the Hokiesheld ASU to 24 yards on theground and 227 yards overall.Tech's offense accounted for387 total yards, including 288yards rushing.

DeAngelo Hallscores the Hokies’first touchdownin the season opener.

2002 Game-by-Game

Hokies Strong at the Outset En Route to a 10-4 Finish


A CLOSER LOOK• Louisiana State, which was ranked 14th in the Associated

Press poll, was the highest-ranked team in the AP poll thatVirginia Tech has defeated since a 28-10 win over No. 9 Texasin the 1995 Sugar Bowl game. The last time Tech beat a higherranked team in Blacksburg was during the 1964 season whenthe Hokies downed No. 10 Florida State by a score of 20-11.That game was played at Miles Stadium.

• The attendance of 65,049 for the Tech-LSU game set newstate and Tech records at the time for the largest crowd to see afootball game. The previous attendance record for thecommonwealth of Virginia was 61,625 set during last season'sgame between Virginia Tech and Virginia in Charlottesville. Theformer Tech mark was set during the 2000 season when all sixhome games were sellouts of 56,272.

• Redshirt freshman Justin Hamilton (Clintwood, Va.) andredshirt sophomore Jason Lallis (Mitchellville, Md.) bothblocked punts during the Hokies' win over LSU. Hamilton's blockin the second quarter set up Tech's second touchdown of thegame, while Lallis' block in the fourth quarter resulted in a safety.It marked the 17th time in Frank Beamer's tenure as head coachthat the special teams unit posted two blocks in a game.

• Only three players had rushing carries for the Hokiesduring the LSU game. The last time Tech only had three playerscarry the football in a game was during a 1994 game withVirginia.

• Tech's 231 yards of total offense against LSU ranks as thelowest total for the Hokies in a victory since gaining just 206yards during a 1999 win at Pittsburgh.

BLACKSBURG, Va. —Sixteenth-ranked VirginiaTech used a strong defenseand an opportunistic offenseto defeat No. 14 LouisianaState, 26-8, in front of a state-record crowd of 65,049 atLane Stadium/WorshamField.

Tech capitalized on goodfield position to build a 14-0advantage in the first half. A17-yard punt return bysophomore DeAngelo Hallput the Hokies at the LSU 27late in the first quarter. Fromthere, it took Tech just sixplays to score its firsttouchdown. A blocked puntgave the Hokies the footballat the LSU 29 less than two

Sept. 1, 2002 • Lane Stadium/Worsham FieldAttendance 65,049

Louisiana State 0 0 0 8 — 8Virginia Tech 7 7 3 9 — 26

VT (0:30 re 1st) — Jones 2 run (Warley kick)VT (12:58 re 2nd) — Suggs 6 run (Warley kick)VT (11:22 re 3rd) — FG Warley 41VT (14:02 re 4th) — Suggs 2 run (Warley kick)LSU (10:00 re 4th) — Toefield 1 run (Clayton pass from Mauck)VT (0:05 re 4th) — safety, punt blocked out of end zone

Team Stats LSU VTFirst downs 14 13Rushes-yds. 28-80 32-166Passing yds. 134 65Return yds. 52 68Passes 15-35-1 7-14-0Punts-avg. 9-27 9-45Fumbles-lost 4--1 4-1Penalties-yds. 8-61 8-65Time of poss. 25:56 34:04Sacks by 3-21 4-20

Individual LeadersRushing — LSU, Toefield 10-46, Davis 7-23, Mauck 10-6, Addai

1-5; VT, Suggs 22-91, Jones 14-70, Randall 14-6, Team 1-(-1).Passing — LSU, Mauck 15-35-1-134; VT, Randall 5-9-0-47, Noel

2-5-18-0.Receiving — LSU, Clayton 5-49, Toefield 3-20, Brazell 1-12,

Edwards 1-11, Henderson 1-10, Carey 1-9, Addai 1-9, Davis 1-8, Myers1-6; VT, Humes 1-17, Parham 1-11, Wilford 1-11, Witten 1-8, Willis 1-7,Suggs 1-6, Easlick 1-5.

Game 2: Hokies Post 26-9 Victory Over Defending SEC Champion LSUminutes into the secondquarter. A 6-yard TD run byLee Suggs capped a four-play drive.

Defensively, the Hokieskept the pressure on LSUquarterback Matt Mauck,registering four quarterbacksacks and 14 hurries. Techlimited the Tigers to 80 yardson the ground and 214 yardsoverall. LSU converted onjust one of 13 third-downplays during the contest. Apass interception bylinebacker Vegas Robinsonset up Tech's last touchdown.

Suggs led the Hokieswith 91 yards rushing andtwo touchdowns on 22carries.

Jim Davis sacks LSU quarterback Matt Mauck in the waning moments of Tech’svictory over the defending SEC champs.


A CLOSER LOOK• Prior to the kickoff of the Marshall game, Tech head coach

Frank Beamer's jersey was retired. Beamer, who is in his 16thseason as the Hokies' head coach, was a three-year starter in thesecondary for Tech from 1966-68. He is the winningest footballcoach in school history and is a member of the Tech Sports Hall ofFame. Beamer was the consensus Division I-A Coach of the Year in1999 when he helped guide Tech to the national championshipgame.

• Tech running backs Kevin Jones (Chester, Pa.) and LeeSuggs (Roanoke, Va.) both rushed for over 150 yards in theMarshall game. Jones compiled 171 yards on 24 carries, whileSuggs finished with 153 yards on 24 attempts. It marked just thesecond time in Tech history that two players had rushed for 150 ormore yards in the same game. It was first done by tailbacks MauriceWilliams (165) and Eddie Hunter (159) against William & Maryduring the 1985 season. Jones and Suggs were just the third set ofbacks to accomplish the feat in BIG EAST history. Boston Collegebacks Chuckie Dukes (162) and Dwight Shirley (160) did it againstMichigan State in 1992. Two other BC backs, Omari Walker (185)and Mike Cloud (159),equalled the feat against Miami in 1997.

• Tech mounted its longest touchdown drive of the seasonagainst Marshall, going 90 yards in nine plays. Tech also had aseason-high 15-play drive that took 8:02 off the clock, anotherseason-best.

• Marshall's 442 yards passing were the most against the Hokiessince 1993 when Boston College passed for 448 yards. It was thethird-highest overall total ever against a Tech team. The Herd got233 of their passing yards during the fourth quarter.

Game 3: Tech Rushes To 47-21 Victory Over Marshall Thundering Herd

Sept. 12, 2002 • Lane Stadium/Worsham FieldAttendance 65,049

Marshall 0 0 0 21 — 21Virginia Tech 10 10 6 21 — 47

VT (10:46 re 1st) — FG Warley 42VT (2:47 re 1st) — Jones 25 run (Warley kick)VT (13:21 re 2nd) — FG Warley 43VT (9:11 re 2nd) —Jones 15 run (Warley kick)VT (2:57 re 3rd) — Suggs 1 run (pass failed)VT (14:02 re 4th) — Suggs 1 run (Warley kick)MU (11:56 re 4th) — Watts 9 pass from Leftwich (Head kick)VT (5:38 re 4th) — Jones 1 run (Warley kick)MU (4:20 re 4th) — Marriott 18 pass from Leftwich (Head kick)MU (2:25 re 4th) — Bates 19 pass from Leftwich (Head kick)VT (1:28 re 4th) — Candelas 10 run (Warley kick)

Team Stats MU VTFirst downs 25 28Rushing yds. 16-34 66-395Passing yds. 442 101Return yds. 0 52Passes 36-56-1 5-12-0Punts-avg. 3-49 1-49Fumbles-lost 3-2 1-0Penalties-yds. 5-40 7-65Time of poss. 25:53 34:07Sacks by 1-8 2-14

Individual LeadersRushing — MU, Carey 6-17, Wallace 4-16, Hargrove 1-9, Watts

1-6, Leftwich 4-(-14); VT, Jones 24-171, Suggs 24-153, Randall 7-36,Easlick 4-18, Candelas 2-11, Spence 1-5, Humes 2-3, Team 2-(-2).

Passing — MU, Leftwich 31-49-1-406; Hill 5-6-0-36, Team 0-1-0-0; VT, Randall 5-12-0-101.

Receiving — MU, Jones 11-164, Watts 7-85, Davis 6-72, Marriott6-60, Rader 3-30, Deifel 2-12, Bates 1-19; VT, Wilford 2-49, Witten 2-44, Easlick 1-8.

BLACKSBURG, Va. —Tailbacks Kevin Jones and LeeSuggs combined for 324 yardsrushing and five touchdowns asNo. 11 Virginia Tech posted aconvincing 47-21 win against No.16 Marshall in a Thursday nightESPN game at Lane Stadium/Worsham Field.

While the Tech defense washolding Marshall quarterbackByron Leftwich in check, Jonesand Suggs helped the Hokiespile up a 33-0 lead before theHerd got on the scoreboard withthree fourth-quarter touchdowns.Jones rushed for 171 yards andthree touchdowns, while Suggsadded 153 yards and a pair ofTDs.

Defensively, Tech was at itsbest when it mattered, holdingMarshall to just 234 yards duringthe first three quarters. Theoffense helped out with fourtouchdown drives of more than70 yards, including a 15-play,85-yard drive that took up morethan eight minutes on the clock.

Kevin Jones didn’t get into the end zone on this dive, but did on the next playto put the Hokies up 40-7 over Marshall in the fourth quarter.


COLLEGE STATION,Texas — Virginia Techsnapped Texas A&M's 29-game home winning streakagainst non-conferenceteams with a hard-fought 13-3victory over the 19th-rankedAggies. Tech became the firstnon-conference team to winat Kyle Field since Alabama in1988.

Points and yards werehard to come by in a gamethat featured two of thenation's best defenses. Butthe Tech offense, under thedirection of sophomorequarterback Bryan Randall,did what it had to do to helpsecure the Hokies' thirdstraight victory over a Top 20team. Randall guided Tech on

A CLOSER LOOK• The crowd of 83,746 at Texas A&M's Kyle Field was

the largest ever to see a Tech team play. The previoushigh was 80,500 fans at Clemson in 1988.

• Tech's win at Kyle Field gave the Aggies a rare homeloss. It marked just the ninth time Texas A&M has lost toany team at home since the 1988 season.

• Tech's win against the No. 19 Aggies marked theHokies' third win against a Top 20 team in as many games.The Hokies defeated No. 14 LSU and No. 16 Marshallearlier. That marks the first time in school history Tech hasbeaten three teams ranked among the top 20 teams in theAssociated Press Poll in successive games. The Hokiesposted three wins in a row against teams in the AP Top 25during the 1996 season, downing No. 18 Miami, No. 23West Virginia and No. 20 Virginia in consecutive games.

• When Texas A&M kicked a field goal in the firstquarter, it marked the first points of the season againstTech in the first half of play. It also marked the firstsuccessful field goal of the season against the Hokies.

• Willie Pile's interception in the Texas A&M game wasthe 11th of his Tech career. The senior free safety fromAlexandria, Va., is now tied for seventh on Tech's careerinterception list with Mike Johnson, Ashley Lee andWilliam Yarborough.

• Defensive end Nathaniel Adibi (Hampton, Va.)posted three sacks against Texas A&M. Adibi is thesecond Tech player to register three sacks in a game thisseason. End Jim Davis (Highland Springs, Va.) had threeagainst LSU.

Game 4: Hokies End Texas A&M Home Streak With 13-3 Victory

Sept. 21, 2002 • Kyle FieldAttendance 83,746

Virginia Tech 0 3 3 7 — 13Texas A&M 3 0 0 0 — 3

A&M (4:58 re 1st) — FG Pegram 43VT (0:57 re 2nd) — FG Warley 22VT (9:10 re 3rd) — FG Warley 26VT (12:29 re 4th) —Suggs 1 run (Warley kick)

Team Stats VT A&MFirst downs 13 10Rushing yds. 48-129 28-38Passing yds. 119 118Return yds. 85 6Passes 10-11-0 14-35-2Punts-avg. 7-41 7-48Fumbles-lost 2-1 2-1Penalties-yds. 2-20 5-40Time of poss. 32:57 27:03Sacks by 5-32 4-24

Individual LeadersRushing — VT, Suggs 13-51, Jones 15-48, Randall 17-14,

Johnson 1-13, Easlick 2-3; A&M, Farmer 12-22, McNeal 6-5, Joseph 1-4, Weber 2-4, Long 4-2, Goynes 1-1, Flemming 2-0.

Passing — VT, Randall 10-11-0-119; A&M, Long 13-28-1-111;McNeal 1-6-1-7.

Receiving — VT, Parham 4-23, Wilford 2-63, Witten 2-21,Johnson 1-8, Humes 1-4; A&M, Taylor 5-56, Murphy 4-25, Thomas 2-19, Porter 2-10, Weber 1-8.

an eight-play, 86-yardtouchdown drive early in thefourth quarter that put theHokies in control. A 52-yardpass from Randall to endErnest Wilford was the keyplay, setting up a 1-yard LeeSuggs touchdown run with12:29 left.

Tech's defense assured thevictory by limiting the Aggies'offense to just 58 total yardsduring its last five possessions.Overall, the Hokies allowedjust 156 total yards in thegame. Tech forced threeturnovers and sacked A&Mquarterbacks five times.

Randall, in his first roadstart, completed 10 of 11passes for 119 yards and didnot throw an interception.

Ernest Wilford’s 52-yard gain on a Bryan Randall pass set up the fourth-quartertouchdown that iced Tech’s big road win at Kyle Field.


KALAMAZOO, Mich. — A pairof touchdowns in the final twominutes of the first half helpedpropel No. 5 Virginia Tech to a30-0 victory at Western MichiganUniversity.

The Hokies led just 3-0 beforescoring twice within a 20-secondspan of the second quarter. A28-yard shovel pass fromquarterback Bryan Randall totailback Lee Suggs producedTech's first touchdown with 1:41remaining in the half. At the 1:21mark, linebacker AlexMarkogiannakis scooped up aWMU fumble and rambled 25yards for another Tech touchdownto give the Hokies a 16-0 lead atthe end of the half.

Tech's defense producedanother stellar showing, allowingjust 35 yards on the ground and268 yards overall. Tech defendersforced three fumbles, posted fivequarterback sacks and compiled21 QB hurries.

Randall directed the Hokies onscoring drives of 84 and 77 yardsin the second half. He completed13 of 19 passes for 194 yardsduring the game and added 40yards rushing.

A CLOSER LOOK• Virginia Tech split end Terrell Parham (Bartow, Fla.), linebacker

Alex Markogiannakis (Chantilly, Va.) and flanker Richard Johnson(Baltimore, Md.) all made their first collegiate starts against WesternMichigan.

• When quarterback Bryan Randall (Williamsburg, Va.) threw aninterception in the first quarter against WMU, it marked the first Techpass that had been intercepted during the 2002 season.

• Jon Mollerup (Lyndhurst, Va.) attempted his first varsity fieldgoal and extra point during Tech's win at Western Michigan.Mollerup, who handles the Hokies' kickoffs, was pressed into duty inthe first half when starter Carter Warley (Richmond, Va.) complainedof back pains. Mollerup hit a 37-yard field goal for Tech's first pointsand made one of two extra point attempts. He missed on a 42-yardfield goal try. Warley returned to kick two extra points in the secondhalf.

• Senior Alex Markogiannakis (Chantilly, Va.) became the 38thdifferent Virginia Tech player to score a defensive touchdown sinceFrank Beamer took over as the head coach in 1987. Markogiannakispicked up a WMU fumble and returned it 25 yards for his first careertouchdown. It was the 47th touchdown scored by the defense underBeamer.

• When the Hokies and Broncos played a scoreless first quarter,it marked the first scoreless opening quarter in a Tech game since a1999 game against West Virginia in Morgantown.

• Tech was the highest ranked team (No. 5) to ever play a footballgame at a Mid-American Conference stadium.

Game 5: Tech Overcomes Slow Start To Post 30-0 Road Win at WMU

Sept. 28, 2002 • Waldo FieldAttendance 27,218

Virginia Tech 0 16 7 7 — 30Western Michigan 0 0 0 0 — 0

VT (14:18 re 2nd) — FG Mollerup 37VT (1:41 re 2nd) — Suggs 28 pass from Randall (kick failed)VT (1:21 re 2nd) — Markogiannakis 25 fumble return (Mollerup kick)VT (8:52 re 3rd) —Suggs 5 run (Warley kick)VT (11:28 re 4th) — Jones 2 run (Warley kick)

Team Stats VT WMUFirst downs 19 12Rushing yds. 39-128 27-37Passing yds. 212 233Return yds. 58 6Passes 14-25-2 24-44-0Punts-avg. 6-44 8-37Fumbles-lost 2-0 3-3Penalties-yds. 4-30 9-74Time of poss. 29:53 30:07Sacks by 5-30 1-4

Individual LeadersRushing — VT, Suggs 13-48, Randall 8-40, Jones 14-36, Humes

1-3, Imoh 1-3, Team 2-(-2); WMU, Reed 15-31, Riley 3-18, Munson1-(-3), Drach 8-(-11).

Passing — VT, Randall 13-19-2-194, Noel 1-6-0-18; WMU, Drach22-39-0-210, Munson 2-4-0-23, Thomas 0-1-0-0.

Receiving — VT, Wilford 2-38, Willis 2-27, Johnson 2-26, Parham2-20, Easlick 2-(-2), Witten 1-34, Suggs 1-28, Hamilton 1-23, Spence1-18; WMU, Mosley 7-66, Afariogun 4-31, Chestnut 3-54, Lewis 3-15,Thomas 2-12, Walker 1-26, Johnson 1-12, Reed 1-6, Jennings 1-6,Kiner 1-5.

Linebacker Alex Markogiannakis heads for the end zone on a 25-yard fumble return against WMU.


CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. —Virginia Tech used a ball-control offense that ground out334 yards rushing to open itsBIG EAST Conferenceschedule with a 28-23 victoryover Boston College in aThursday night ESPN game atAlumni Stadium.

Tech put together four longtouchdown drives andconsumed 37:50 on the clockwith an offensive attack thatstuck to the ground on 61 of its68 plays. The Hokies drove 81and 75 yards for touchdowns inthe first half on the way to a14-7 advantage at theintermission.

Kevin Jones broke a 14-14tie when he capped a 74-yardTech drive late in the third

A CLOSER LOOK• Both Lee Suggs (Roanoke, Va.) and Kevin Jones

(Chester, Pa.) rushed for over 100 yards in the Boston Collegegame. Suggs ran for 154 yards on 26 carries, while Jonesposted 144 yards on 18 attempts. That marks the second timethis season that Suggs and Jones have both produced over100 yards on the ground in the same game. The last time Techhad the same two players both rush for 100 yards or more inthe same game twice in a season was 1986. That year,tailbacks Maurice Williams and Eddie Hunter accomplishedthe feat three times, both rushing for over 100 yards in gamesagainst Syracuse, Virginia and Richmond. During their Techcareers, Williams and Hunter both gained over 100 yards onthe ground in the same game a record four times. They alsostand as the only Tech players ever to rush for 100 or moreyards in the same bowl game (1986 Peach Bowl). The onlyother Tech twosome since 1950 to accomplish the feat morethan once in the same season was Phil Rogers and JamesBarber in 1973. Rogers and Barber both ran for over 100 yardsin games against Virginia and Florida State.

• Virginia Tech's 15 penalties against Boston College werethe most during Frank Beamer's 15-plus seasons as headcoach. The previous high was 14 against South Carolina in1988 and Miami in 1993.

• Willie Pile (Alexandria, Va.) posted his secondinterception of the season and the 12th of his career duringthe Hokies' win at Boston College. His pick against the Eaglesmoves him into a tie for fifth place on both the Tech and BIGEAST career lists for interceptions. Pile is tied with JohnGranby and Mike Widger on the Tech list. He shares the fifthspot on the BIG EAST list with former Syracuse player,Donovin Darius.

Game 6: Tech Opens BIG EAST Play With 28-23 Win at Boston College

Oct. 10, 2002 • Alumni StadiumAttendance 42,826

Virginia Tech 7 7 7 7 — 28Boston College 0 7 7 9 — 23

VT (10:43 re 1st) — Wilford 44 pass from Randall (Schmitt kick)VT (12:12 re 2nd) — Suggs 1 run (Schmitt kick)BC (1:03 re 2nd) — Burke 83 punt return (Sciortino kick)BC (6:39 re 3rd) —Knight 5 run (Sciortino kick)VT (0:42 re 3rd) — Jones 4 run (Schmitt kick)BC (10:35 re 4th) — FG Sciortino 49VT (5:41 re 4th) — Suggs 27 run (Schmitt kick)BC (0:49 re 4th) — St. Pierre 1 run (pass failed)

Team Stats VT BCFirst downs 21 15Rushing yds. 61-334 26-83Passing yds. 86 232Return yds. 55 105Passes 4-7-0 16-30-3Punts-avg. 5-37 2-39Fumbles-lost 0-0 2-1Penalties-yds. 15-96 5-40Time of poss. 37:50 22:10Sacks by 4-30 4-21

Individual LeadersRushing — VT, Suggs 26-154, Jones 18-144, Randall 15-37,

Team 1-(-1). BC, Knight 15-94, Dodd 1-6, St. Pierre 10-17.Passing — VT, Randall 4-7-0-86; BC, St. Pierre 16-30-3-232.Receiving — VT, Wilford 2-71, Witten 1-8, Johnson 1-7; BC,

Adams 5-75, Knight 5-63, Burke 2-56, Hemmings 1-17, Daniels 1-9,Hazard 1-9, Ryan 1-3.

quarter with a 4-yard TD run.Lee Suggs put the finishingtouches on another 75-yarddrive and the win with a27-yard scoring run with 5:41left. Quarterback BryanRandall joined his tailbacks inmaking key plays as Techfinished with 420 yards oftotal offense. Randall tosseda 44-yard TD pass to ErnestWilford and made several keyscrambles for first downs.

Tech's defensecontributed four sacks, threeinterceptions and a fumblerecovery while holding BC to83 yards on the ground and315 yards overall. The Hokiesalso benefited from a pair ofcostly personal foul penaltiesby the Eagles.

Willie Pile’s interception in the end zone ended a Boston College drive and helpedpreserve Tech’s Thursday night road win in Chestnut Hill.


BLACKSBURG, Va. —Virginia Tech scored 21unanswered points in the firstquarter to pave the way for a35-14 Homecoming victoryagainst Rutgers.

Once again, the running oftailbacks Lee Suggs and KevinJones highlighted the day forthe Hokies, who finished with342 yards on the ground and492 yards overall. Suggs led theway with 197 yards and a pairof touchdown runs, while Jonesadded 132 yards, including ahighlight-reel, 58-yard TDscamper. Quarterback BryanRandall was efficient throughthe air, completing 11 of 15passes for 131 yards and atouchdown.

Tech's defense kept thepressure on the Scarlet Knights,registering eight quarterbacksacks and two interceptions,while limiting the visitors tominus-seven yards rushing.Rutgers still managed to staywithin striking distance untilDeAngelo Hall weaved his way51 yards for a touchdown on apunt return with just under fiveminutes remaining in the game.

A CLOSER LOOK• Virginia Tech held Rutgers to minus-seven yards rushing. The last

time the Hokies held a team to negative yards rushing was againstTemple during the 2000 season. Tech limited the Owls to minus-15yards in that game.

• Rutgers became the first team during the 2002 season to scorepoints off of a Virginia Tech turnover. The Scarlet Knights did it twice,setting up their first touchdown with an interception and getting theirsecond TD following a Tech fumble.

• Both Lee Suggs (Roanoke, Va.) and Kevin Jones (Chester, Pa.)went over the 100-yard mark in rushing for the second game in a row.Suggs ran for a career-high 197 yards on 21 carries and Jones added132 yards on 13 carries.

• Ernest Wilford (Richmond, Va.) posted career-bests at the timefor pass receptions and receiving yards during the Rutgers game. Theredshirt junior caught seven passes for 99 yards and one touchdown.

• Tech registered a season-high eight sacks against the ScarletKnights for losses totaling 75 yards. The Hokies' sack total was thehighest since posting nine in a 1999 game at Pittsburgh. The sackyardage in the Rutgers' game was the most for Tech during CoachFrank Beamer's 15-plus seasons. The previous high under Beamerwas minus-70 yards on seven sacks against Boston College duringthe 1996 season.

• Freshman Jimmy F. Williams (Hampton, Va.) recorded his firstcareer interception against RU.

• The Rutgers game marked the first time since Sept. 11, 1999(versus UAB) that a Tech home game was not televised.

Game 7: Hokies Celebrate Homecoming With 35-14 Win Over Rutgers

Oct. 19, 2002 • Lane Stadium/Worsham FieldAttendance 64,907

Rutgers 0 7 7 0 — 14Virginia Tech 21 7 0 7 — 35

VT (6:35 re 1st) — Suggs 3 run (Schmitt kick)VT (3:12 re 1st) — Wilford 16 pass from Randall (Schmitt kick)VT (0:41 re 1st) — Suggs 42 run (Schmitt kick)RU (8:34 re 2nd) —Martin 12 pass from Cubit (Sands kick)VT (2:29 re 2nd) — Jones 58 run (Schmitt kick)RU (11:42 re 3rd) — Facyson 31 pass from Cubit (Sands kick)VT (4:57 re 4th) — Hall 51 punt return (Schmitt kick)

Team Stats RU VTFirst downs 11 26Rushing yds. 25-(-7) 50-342Passing yds. 222 150Return yds. 10 83Passes 17-34-2 12-16-1Punts-avg. 7-45 2-32Fumbles-lost 1-0 6-2Penalties-yds. 11-100 7-61Time of poss. 28:05 31:55Sacks by 4-27 8-75

Individual LeadersRushing — RU, Pittman 7-27, Facyson 5-19, Carty 1-12, Cubit 12-

(-65); VT, Suggs 21-197, Jones 13-132, Imoh 5-13, Johnson 1-0,Randall 10-0.

Passing — RU, Cubit 17-32-2-222, Facyson 0-1-0-0, Barnes 0-1-0-0; VT, Randall 11-15-1-131, Noel 1-1-0-19.

Receiving — RU, Hobbs 5-89, Martin 4-30, Tucker 3-15, Facyson2-48, Andre 1-35, Loomis 1-3, Pilch 1-2; VT, Wilford 7-99, Witten 2-16,Mazzetta 1-19, Hamilton 1-10, Parham 1-6.

Linebacker Mikal Baaqee and his defensive teammates held Rutgers to minus-seven yards rushing.


BLACKSBURG, Va. —Despite a sub-par offensiveperformance that includedfour turnovers, Virginia Techremained undefeated with a20-10 BIG EAST victoryagainst Temple at LaneStadium/Worsham Field.

The Hokies drove for atouchdown on their firstpossession of the game, buthad trouble maintainingconsistency on offenseduring the remainder of thecontest. Tech had posses-sions ended by fumbles twiceand tossed a pair of intercep-tions. Two of those turnoverscame on the Tech side of thefield, while one of theinterceptions was returned to

A CLOSER LOOK• Virginia Tech's win against Temple gave the Hokies their eighth

straight win. It marks just the third time in school history that Techhas opened a season 8-0. The Hokies also won their first eightgames in 1999 and 2000.

• Fullback Doug Easlick's 32-yard touchdown catch at theend of the third quarter was the longest pass reception of hisTech career.

• Tailback Lee Suggs (Roanoke, Va.) hauled in a 30-yard passduring the Temple game, the longest catch of his Tech career. Thecatch was also the longest for a Tech tailback since 1997 whenLamont Pegues caught a 47-yard pass against Virginia.

• Richard Johnson (Baltimore, Md.) posted career-bests forpass receptions and receiving yards during the Temple game. Theredshirt sophomore flanker caught four passes for 40 yards againstthe Owls.

• Vincent Fuller (Baltimore, Md.) intercepted two passes in thered zone to help the Hokies defeat Temple. It marked the thirdstraight game in which Fuller has had at least one pass interception.The redshirt sophomore had one pick at the Owls' 8-yard line andanother in the end zone.

• True freshman kicker Nic Schmitt (Salem, Va.) connected on a21-yard field goal in the first half of the Temple game. It was his firstsuccessful field goal as a Hokie. He also had a 22-yarder in thefourth quarter.

• Redshirt freshman James Anderson (Chesapeake, Va.) madehis first collegiate start and posted 11 tackles and a quarterbackhurry. He was starting in place of injured linebacker VegasRobinson.

Game 8: Tech Overcomes Turnovers To Hand Temple 20-10 Loss

Oct. 26, 2002 • Lane Stadium/Worsham FieldAttendance 64,937

Temple 0 0 3 7 — 10Virginia Tech 7 3 7 3 — 20

VT (9:16 re 1st) — Suggs 4 run (Schmitt kick)VT (0:02 re 2nd) — FG Schmitt 21TU (8:51 re 3rd) — FG Poklemba 36VT (00:00 re 3rd) — Easlick 32 pass from Randall (Schmitt kick)VT (10:05 re 4th) — FG Schmitt 22TU (1:48 re 4th) — Szarka 13 pass from McGann (Poklemba kick)

Team Stats TU VTFirst downs 12 20Rushing yds. 25-39 54-199Passing yds. 230 146Return yds. 23 22Passes 17-32-3 13-20-2Punts-avg. 5-32 2-45Fumbles-lost 2-0 2-2Penalties-yds. 9-65 4-30Time of poss. 23:45 36:15Sacks by 0-0 2-10

Individual LeadersRushing — TU, Sharps 17-38, McGann 6-16, Team 1-(-5),

Ringwelski 1-(-10); VT, Jones 17-72, Suggs 19-47, Randall 9-47,Easlick 4-16, Humes 3-10, Johnson 1-9, Team 1-(-2).

Passing — TU, McGann 17-32-3-230; VT, Randall 13-20-2-146.Receiving — TU, Dillard 4-98, Cobb 4-40, Szarka 3-43, Fenton

2-22, Sharps 2-15, Stubbs 2-12; VT, Johnson 4-40, Easlick 3-38,Wilford 2-11, Suggs 1-30, Hamilton 1-11, Witten 1-10, Humes 1-6.

the Hokies' 26-yard line. A32-yard touchdown catch byfullback Doug Easlick on thefinal play of the third quarterand two Nic Schmitt field goalsproved just enough of an edgefor Tech.

Once again, the Hokies'defense helped save the day,limiting the Owls to just 39yards on the ground andintercepting three passes.Redshirt sophomore VincentFuller picked off passes at theTech 8-yard line and in the endzone to stop a pair of Templescoring threats. The Owlsconverted on just 3 of 12 third-down conversions against theHokies and finished with 269total yards.

Fullback Doug Easlick had a 32-yard TD reception to help the Hokiesget past Temple.


BLACKSBURG, Va. — TheUniversity of Pittsburgh scored21 unanswered points in thesecond half to knock No. 3

Game 9: Pittsburgh Rallies To Hand Hokies First Loss of Season, 28-21

Nov. 2, 2002 • Lane Stadium/Worsham FieldAttendance 64,971

Pittsburgh 7 0 14 7 — 28Virginia Tech 14 0 7 0 — 21

VT (7:07 re 1st) — Jones 3 run (Schmitt kick)VT (4:38 re 1st) — Suggs 1 run (Schmitt kick)P (3:06 re 1st) — Fitzgerald 31 pass from Rutherford (Abdul kick)VT (13:52 re 3rd) — Suggs 59 run (Schmitt kick)P (10:39 re 3rd) — Fitzgerald 14 pass from Rutherford (Abdul kick)P (7:09 re 3rd) — Fitzgerald 10 pass from Rutherford (Abdul kick)P (4:11 re 4th) — Miree 53 run (Abdul kick)

Team Stats P VTFirst downs 22 15Rushing yds. 44-275 45-130Passing yds. 208 145Return yds. 50 98Passes 11-26-2 12-22-1Punts-avg. 6-33 7-44Fumbles-lost 3-1 4-2Penalties-yds. 7-68 6-60Time of poss. 28:54 31:06Sacks by 7-33 2-11

Individual LeadersRushing — P, Miree 23-161, Murphy 2-58, Rutherford 15-56,

Polite 2-0, Team 2-0; VT, Suggs 25-128, Jones 2-4, Easlick 2-2,Randall 16-(-4).

Passing — P, Rutherford 11-26-2-208; VT, Randall 12-22-1-145.Receiving — P, Fitzgerald 5-105, Wilson 4-85, Slade 1-11, Miree

1-7; VT, Wilford 6-80, Witten 3-29, Humes 1-15, Parham 1-13,Suggs 1-8.

the game around with a pair ofquick TD passes in the thirdquarter and took the lead on a53-yard touchdown run by

Brandon Miree with just over fourminutes remaining in the game.

The Tech offense mountedjust one threat after Suggs' third-

Virginia Tech from the ranksof the unbeaten with a 28-21 win at Lane Stadium/Worsham Field. It was thePanthers' first-ever win inBlacksburg.

Pittsburgh engineeredthe win by controlling theline of scrimmage on bothsides of the ball. ThePanthers rolled up 483yards of offense in thegame, including 301 yardsin the second half. Theirtotal included 275 yards onthe ground against a Techdefense that entered thegame ranked No. 1nationally in rushingdefense with an average of40.8 yards allowed pergame.

Tech enjoyed a 14-0lead early in the first quarterand led 21-7 after a 59-yardtouchdown run by tailbackLee Suggs less than twominutes into the secondhalf. The Panthers turned

quarter touchdown run,moving to the Pittsburgh 25before missing a field goalattempt.

A CLOSER LOOK• Virginia Tech's 28-21 loss to Pittsburgh marked just the seventh

BIG EAST loss for Tech at home since the football league formed in1991. The Hokies are now 0-3 against the Panthers in the month ofNovember and 7-0 in September and October.

• Pittsburgh's 483 yards of total offense were the most againstTech since the 1997 season when Virginia posted 502 yards in a34-20 win. The Panthers' 275 yards rushing were the most againstthe Hokies since the 1996 Orange Bowl when Nebraska ran for279 yards.

• Tailback Lee Suggs (Roanoke, Va.) turned in the longest runfrom scrimmage of his Tech career, when he scampered 59 yards fora touchdown in the third quarter. Suggs finished the game with 128yards on the ground, moving him by Shyrone Stith and VaughnHebron for eighth place in career rushing at Tech.

• Senior free safety Willie Pile (Alexandria, Va.) registered his13th career pass interception during the Pittsburgh game. The pickmoved Pile into a tie with Ron Davidson and Lenny Smith for thirdplace in career interceptions at Tech.

• Nathaniel Adibi (Hampton, Va.) blocked a punt in the firstquarter against Pittsburgh. It was the first block of Adibi's career andTech's 10th block during its series against the Panthers. Tech hasblocked more kicks against Pittsburgh during Frank Beamer's tenureas head coach than against any other team.

• Pittsburgh's Brandon Miree rushed for 161 yards in thePanthers' win at Tech. Miree's rushing total was the highest againstTech since Boston College's Mike Cloud ran for 186 yards againstthe Hokies in 1998.

Nathaniel Adibi blocks a punt against the Panthers.


SYRACUSE, N.Y. —Damien Rhodes ran for atouchdown and a two-pointconversion in the third overtimeperiod to give homestandingSyracuse a wild 50-42 triple-overtime victory over No. 8Virginia Tech at the CarrierDome. It was the Hokies' sixthloss in their eight trips to theDome.

Tech, which got record-setting performances fromquarterback Bryan Randall andreceiver Ernest Wilford, gave upover 600 yards of offense butstill had a number ofopportunities to win the game.The Hokies missed field goals atthe end of regulation play and atthe end of the first overtimeperiod. SU kept its hopes alivewith a fourth-down TD pass inthe second overtime, thenscored and intercepted a Techpass in the third extra period toend the four-hour game.

Nov. 9, 2002 • Carrier DomeAttendance 48,239

Virginia Tech 14 0 7 14 7 — 42Syracuse 3 9 10 13 15 — 50

SU (9:25 re 1st) — FG Barber 30VT (5:41 re 1st) — Suggs 15 pass from Randall (Warley kick)VT (3:29 re 1st) — Wilford 75 pass from Randall (Warley kick)SU (14:07 re 2nd) — FG Barber 26SU (6:26 re 2nd) — Reyes 1 run (run failed)SU (8:42 re 3rd) — FG Barber 38VT (7:55 re 3rd) — Wilford 34 pass from Randall (Warley kick)SU (4:47 re 3rd) — Reyes 9 run (Barber kick)SU (13:38 re 4th) — Reyes 9 run (kick failed)VT (7:40 re 4th) — Wilford 87 pass from Randall (Warley kick)VT(4:45 re 4th) — Wilford 6 pass from Randall (Warley kick)SU (4:27 re 4th) — Rhodes 3 run (Shafer kick)VT (2nd OT) — Randall 1 run (Warley kick)SU (2nd OT) — Donnelly 6 pass from Nunes (Shafer kick)SU (3rd OT) — Rhodes 25 run (Rhodes run)

Team Stats VT SUFirst downs 18 29Rushing yds. 25-55 60-201Passing yds. 504 403Return yds. -2 65Passes 23-35-3 24-40-3Punts-avg. 6-34 5-39Fumbles-lost 2-2 2-0Penalties-yds. 6-45 9-93Time of poss. 22:44 37:16Sacks by 6-54 2-15

Individual LeadersRushing — VT, Suggs 19-65, Team 1-(-1), Randall 5-(-9); SU,

Reyes 21-118, Rhodes 17-67, Belton 4-20, Davis 5-13, Team 1-(-1),Nunes 12-(-16).

Passing — VT, Randall 23-35-3-504; SU, Nunes 24-40-3-403.Receiving — VT, Wilford 8-279, Parham 5-48, Willis 2-113, Suggs

2-24, Easlick 2-19, Witten 2-11, Johnson 2-10; SU, Tyree 9-229, Riddle8-65, Reyes 2-40, Donnelly 2-32, Rhodes 2-21, Morant 1-16.

Game 10: Tech Suffers Three-Overtime 50-42 Loss at the Carrier Dome

A CLOSER LOOK• Virginia Tech's 50-42 triple-overtime loss at Syracuse was the

second overtime game in Tech football history. Tech won a 27-20single-overtime game at Miami in 1998.

• Ernest Wilford (Richmond, Va.) set Virginia Tech and BIGEAST Conference records for receiving yardage in a game with 279against SU. Wilford's four touchdown catches also set a Tech markand tied the conference record. Ricky Scales held the previous Techrecord for yardage with 213 against Wake Forest in 1972. Scales andAntonio Freeman shared the old touchdown mark with three. DietrichJells of Pittsburgh held the old BIG EAST yardage record with 225against WVU in 1994. SU receiver David Tyree also surpassed theold mark with 229 yards during the win over Tech. Wilford is tied withBilly Davis of Pittsburgh and Chris Brantley of Rutgers for TD catchesin a game.

• Quarterback Bryan Randall (Williamsburg, Va.) set a BIG EASTrecord for passing yards in a single game with 504 versus Syracuse.The old conference mark was 485 yards by Miami's Gino Torrettaagainst San Diego State in 1991. Randall's total ranks second atTech behind Don Strock's 527 yards passing against Houston in1972. Randall's five passing touchdowns set a new Tech mark for anindividual. The old mark of four was set by Strock and equalled byMaurice DeShazo (twice), Michael Vick and Grant Noel. The five TDpasses against SU tie a Tech team record. The Hokies had fivepassing touchdowns against Temple in 1993 — four by DeShazo andone by Jim Druckenmiller.

• Garnell Wilds (Tampa, Fla.) tied a Tech and BIG EAST recordwith three interceptions against the Orangemen.

Bryan Randall passed for a BIG EAST Conference record 504 yards and fivetouchdowns in the Carrier Dome.


A CLOSER LOOK• West Virginia handed Virginia Tech its third-straight loss,

marking the first time since 1997 that the Hokies have lost threeconsecutive games in a season and the first time since 1992 thatTech has lost three straight regular-season games. The win was thefirst in the series for WVU since 1997 and the first in Blacksburg forthe Mountaineers since the 1992 season.

• Quarterback Bryan Randall (Williamsburg, Va.) ran for 125yards against WVU. The last time a Virginia Tech quarterback ranfor 100 or more yards in a game was on Sept. 28, 2000, whenMichael Vick ran for 210 yards at Boston College. Randall also had168 yards passing for a total of 293 yards of offense.

• Redshirt freshman linebacker Blake Warren (Clifton, Va.)posted his first collegiate interception in the third quarter of theTech-WVU game.

• The West Virginia game marked the first time this season thatthe Hokies trailed at the half. WVU led 14-10 after two quarters.

• Ernest Wilford (Richmond, Va.) registered his first blockedpunt during the second quarter of the West Virginia game. It wasthe sixth blocked kick of the season for Tech.

• Lee Suggs (Roanoke, Va.) took over Tech's kickoff returnduties in the West Virginia game. Suggs, whose last kickoff returncame against Miami during the 2000 season, had three returns for77 yards against the Mountaineers.

• The WVU game marked the 67th time since the start of the1993 season that Tech has rushed for 200 yards or more. The losswas just the Hokies' fourth in those 67 contests.


West Virginia 7 7 7 0 — 21Virginia Tech 7 3 6 2 — 18

VT (4:57 re 1st) — Suggs 28 run (Warley kick)WVU (2:45 re 1st) — Cobourne 9 run (James kick)WVU (14:21 re 2nd) — Marshall 7 run (James kick)VT (6:49 re 2nd) — FG Warley 34WVU (4:09 re 3rd) — Wilson 42 run (James kick)VT (1:29 re 3rd) — Willis 6 pass from Randall (pass failed)VT (2:30 re 4th) — Team safety

Team Stats WVU VTFirst downs 20 23Rushing yds. 46-263 44-243Passing yds. 124 168Return yds. 9 52Passes 13-20-1 18-31-1Punts-avg. 5-27 4-36Fumbles-lost 2-0 1-1Penalties-yds. 9-75 6-75Time of poss. 28:05 31:55Sacks by 2-7 0-0

Individual LeadersRushing — WVU, Wilson 11-125, Cobourne 19-80, Marshall

12-43, Garvin 2-22, Fazzolari 1-(-3), Team 1-(-4); VT, Randall 18-125,Suggs 15-71, Jones 9-36, Easlick 2-11.

Passing — WVU, Marshall 23-20-1-124; VT, Randall 18-30-1-168,Team 0-1-0-0.

Receiving — WVU, D. Smith 4-93, Cobourne 3-12, Wilson 3-12,Page 1-5, Neal 1-5, Marshall 1-(-3); VT, Wilford 5-58, Witten 3-45,Suggs 3-22, Easlick 2-17, Johnson 2-6, Shreve 1-7, Humes 1-7,Willis 1-6.

Game 11: Mountaineers Hold Off Hokies for 21-18 BIG EAST WinBLACKSBURG, Va. — West

Virginia used a goal-line standand a pass interception in theend zone to hold off No. 13Virginia Tech for a 21-18Wednesday night victory atLane Stadium/Worsham Field.

The Mountaineers snappeda four-game losing streakagainst Tech with some bigplays on both offense anddefense. A 42-yard touchdownrun by Quincy Wilson put WVUon top, 21-10, late in the thirdquarter. After cutting WestVirginia's advantage to 21-16,Tech marched to theMountaineer's 1-yard line during

the waning minutes of thefourth quarter.

The WVU defense held itsground on three-straight runningplays to preserve the lead. With2:30 remaining, the Mountain-eers took a safety rather thanpunt from their own end zone.Tech got one last chance frommid-field following a free kick.The Hokies moved all the way tothe West Virginia 11 before BrianKing picked off a Randall pass inthe end zone with 12 seconds onthe clock.

Randall finished with 293yards of total offense, including125 yards rushing.

On this touchdown run in the first quarter, tailback Lee Suggs set a newNCAA record by scoring a touchdown in 24 consecutive games. Theprevious record had been set in 1970.


A CLOSER LOOK• Virginia Tech's 21-9 victory against Virginia gave the Hokies

their fourth straight win over their in-state rivals. The last time eitherteam won four straight in the series was from 1980-83 when Techtook four consecutive meetings.

• The crowd of 65,097 was the largest ever to watch a footballgame in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The previous record wasset earlier in the season when Tech had turnouts of 65,049 for itsgames with both LSU and Marshall.

• The 30 combined points by the two teams was the lowest totalin the series since 1988 when Virginia won by a score of 16-10 inBlacksburg.

• A pair of freshmen made their first collegiate starts atdefensive tackle for Tech in the Virginia game. Redshirt freshmanTim Sandidge (Madison Heights, Va.) and true freshmanJonathan Lewis (Richmond, Va.) moved into the lineup after11-game starters Jason Lallis (Mitchellville, Md.) and Kevin Lewisboth suffered season-ending injuries in the West Virginia game.Sandidge and Jonathan Lewis each posted six tackles against theCavaliers.

• Justin Hamilton, a red-shirt freshman from Clintwood, Va.,posted his second blocked punt of the season during the Virginiagame. Hamilton's block against UVa was picked up by truefreshman Darryl Tapp (Chesapeake, Va.) and returned for atouchdown. It was Tapp's first collegiate TD.

• Cols Colas (Plantation, Fla.) had three sacks against UVa. Hebecame the third Tech defensive end to post three sacks in a gameduring the 2002 season. Jim Davis had three versus LSU, whileNathaniel Adibi had three at Texas A&M.


Virginia 3 0 6 0 — 9Virginia Tech 0 14 0 7 — 21

UVa (10:20 re 1st) — FG Hughes 20VT (13:30 re 2nd) — Tapp 11 blocked punt return (Warley kick)VT (6:56 re 2nd) — Suggs 4 run (Warley kick)UVa (10:09 re 3rd) — H. Miller 15 pass from Schaub (kick failed)VT (5:08 re 4th) — Suggs 6 run (Warley kick)

Team Stats UVa VTFirst downs 11 17Rushing yds. 37-152 50-272Passing yds. 51 85Return yds. 35 84Passes 13-24-1 5-11-1Punts-avg. 7-29 5-28Fumbles-lost 5-0 2-2Penalties-yds. 4-25 5-35Time of poss. 28:56 31:04Sacks by 1-5 3-8

Individual LeadersRushing — UVa, Lundy 29-127, McMullen 1-19, Snelling 2-12,

Schaub, 5-(-6); VT, Suggs 19-108, Jones 15-91, Randall 14-67, Easlick1-7, Team 1-(-1).

Passing — UVa, Schaub 12-23-1-43, Hagan 1-1-8; VT, Randall5-11-1-85.

Receiving — UVa, McMullen 4-14, Lundy 4-10, Miller 2-15, Newby1-8, Hagans 1-4, Snelling 1-0; VT, Wilford 2-33, Johnson 1-39, Suggs1-9, Easlick 1-4.

Game 12: Hokies Get Back On Winning Track With 21-9 Win Over UVaBLACKSBURG, Va. —

Virgina Tech relied on itsrunning game and specialteams to snap a three-game

losing streak with a 21-9 winagainst in-state rival Virginiabefore a record-setting crowd atLane Stadium/Worsham Field.

On a cold, blusteryafternoon, the Hokies scored14 second-quarter points togain the upper hand, then put

the game out of reach on LeeSuggs' second touchdown runof the day with 5:08 left toplay.

Suggs led a rushing attackthat produced 272 yards,including 178 in the secondhalf. The senior tailbackgained 108 yards on 19carries, while sophomoreKevin Jones added 91 yardson 15 carries.

Virginia capitalized on aninterception to set up a first-quarter field goal and a fumbledeep in Tech territory to set upa 15-yard TD pass in the thirdperiod. The Cavaliersmanaged a total of just 203yards of offense for the game,including just 76 yards in thesecond half.

Tech's special teams putthe Hokies ahead to stay whenJustin Hamilton blocked aVirginia punt in the secondquarter and Darryl Tappreturned it 11 yards for atouchdown. Suggs capped a61-yard Tech drive with 6:56showing in the quarter to givethe Hokies a 14-3 halftimelead.Cols Colas posted three sacks against Virginia as the Tech defense

held the Wahoos to 203 yards of total offense.


Game 13: No. 1 Miami Takes 56-45 Shootout Victory Over Hokies

A CLOSER LOOK• The 2002 Tech-Miami game was the highest scoring in the series

between the two schools. The 101 points in UM's 56-45 victory overthe Hokies were the most by the two teams since a 43-23 Miami win inBlacksburg during the 1992 season. UM was also ranked No. 1 thatyear.

• Virginia Tech's 45 points against UM were the most allowed bythe Hurricanes since the 1998 season when UCLA scored 45 points ina 49-45 loss to Miami.

• The 96-yard interception return by Willie Pile (Alexandria, Va.)in the third quarter was the third-longest in Tech history. As a team,the Hokies had 152 yards on interception returns for the game, thethird-most in school history.

• Richard Johnson (Baltimore, Md.) had a 91-yard kickoff returnagainst the Hurricanes, the longest by a Tech player since TonyKennedy posted a 91-yard return at Louisville in 1992.

• Miami's 56 points were the most against the Hokies since Tulanescored a 57-38 win over Tech in 1987, Frank Beamer's first season asthe head coach. The Hurricanes' 35 first-half points were the most in ahalf against Tech since Tennessee scored 35 first-half point versus theHokies in the 1994 Gator Bowl. The last time Tech gave up 35 pointsin a half during a regular-season game was in 1973 when Alabama putup 42 first-half points and 35 second-half points on the way to a77-6 win.

• Willis McGahee's six touchdowns and 36 points were the most byan individual against the Hokies. The old mark was 26 points by JimBakhtiar of Virginia in 1957. McGahee's 205 yards rushing marked thefifth-highest total against Tech.

Dec. 7, 2002 • Orange BowlAttendance 76,108

Virginia Tech 0 21 16 8 — 45Miami 14 21 14 7 — 56

UM (11:13 re 1st) — McGahee 1 run (Sievers kick)UM (8:56 re 1st) — Johnson 49 pass from Dorsey (Sievers kick)VT (13:50 re 2nd) — Suggs 1 run (Warley kick)UM (9:27 re 2nd) — McGahee 4 run (Sievers kick)UM (6:19 re 2nd) — McGahee 3 run (Sievers kick)VT (5:15 re 2nd) — Witten 4 pass from Randall (Warley kick)UM (3:16 re 2nd) — McGahee 10 run (Sievers kick)VT (0:24 re 2nd) — Wilford 7 pass from Noel (Warley kick)UM (12:58 re 3rd) — McGahee 1 run (Sievers kick)UM (11:15 re 3rd) — McGahee 31 run (Sievers kick)VT (8:45 re 3rd) — Pile 96 interception return (kick blocked)VT (3:50 re 3rd) — FG Warley 20VT (0:50 re 3rd) — Suggs 9 run (Warley kick)UM (10:06 re 4th) — Winslow 11 pass from Dorsey (Sievers kick)VT (1:51 re 4th) — Suggs 4 run (Johnson pass from Randall)

Team Stats VT UMFirst downs 19 22Rushing yds. 45-192 47-256Passing yds. 172 300Return yds. 241 72Passes 16-27-0 12-21-2Punts-avg. 4-33 3-48Fumbles-lost 3-3 1-0Penalties-yds. 5-55 9-75Time of poss. 28:51 31:09Sacks by 0-0 5-24

Individual LeadersRushing — VT, Randall 25-132, Suggs 15-55, Easlick 1-4, Jones 4-

1; UM, McGahee 39-205, Payton 3-45, Hill 2-7, Dorsey 1-5, Team 2-(-6).Passing — VT, Randall 15-26-0-165, Noel 1-1-0-7; UM, Dorsey 12-

20-1-300, Payton 1-0-1-0.Receiving — VT, Wilford 6-68, Witten 2-21, Jones 2-14, Easlick 2-

14, Humes 1-26, Shreve 1-19, Johnson 1-11, Suggs 1-(-1); UM, Johnson6-193, Parrish 2-61, Winslow 2-25, McGahee 2-21.

MIAMI, Fla. — Running back WillisMcGahee scored six touchdowns astop-ranked Miami earned a spot in theFiesta Bowl with a 56-46 win over No.18 Virginia Tech at the Orange Bowl.

The defending national championsgot off to a fast start with two quicktouchdowns and led 35-21 at the half.Miami extended its lead to 49-21 lessthan five minutes into the third quarter,but found it hard to shake the never-say-die Hokies. Tech reeled off 16straight points to narrow the gap to12 points heading into the fourthquarter, but could never overcome theHurricanes' and three lost fumbles thatwere turned into touchdowns.

McGahee finished the game with205 yards rushing for the 'Canes, whilequarterback Ken Dorsey passed for300 yards. Tech quarterback BryanRandall rushed for 132 yards andpassed for 165. Richard Johnson setup a Tech touchdown with a 91-yardkickoff return, while DeAngelo Hall hada 71-yard punt return that led to a Techfield goal.

Richard Johnson returns a kickoff 91 yards against the Hurricanes.


Final 2002 Standings

Conference OverallW-L Pct. W-L Pct.

Miami 7-0 1.000 12-1 .923West Virginia 6-1 .857 9-4 .692Pittsburgh 5-2 .714 9-4 .692Virginia Tech 3-4 .429 10-4 .714Boston College 3-4 .429 9-4 .692Syracuse 2-5 .286 4-8 .333Temple 2-5 .286 4-8 .333Rutgers 0-7 .000 1-11 .083

2002 BIG EAST

Football Awards

The BIG EAST Bowl Results

Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, Tempe, Ariz.Friday, January 3 • Ohio State 31, Miami 24 (2OT)

Diamond Walnut San Francisco BowlTuesday, December 31 • Virginia Tech 20, Air Force 13

Continental Tire Bowl, Charlotte, N.C.Saturday, December 28 • Virginia 48, West Virginia 22

Motor City Bowl, Detroit, Mich.Thursday, December 26 • Boston College 51, Toledo 25

Insight Bowl, Phoenix, Ariz.Thursday, December 26 • Pittsburgh 38, Oregon State 13

First Team OffensePos. Player School Ht. Wt. Cl.WR Andre Johnson Miami 6-3 227 Jr.WR Larry Fitzgerald** Pittsburgh 6-3 210 Fr.OT Lance Nimmo West Virginia 6-6 287 Sr.OG Bryan Anderson Pittsburgh 6-5 310 Sr.C Brett Romberg Miami 6-3 290 Sr.OG Sherko Haji-Rasouli Miami 6-6 318 Sr.OT Mark Parenteau Boston College 6-5 292 Sr.TE Kellen Winslow Miami 6-5 233 So.QB Ken Dorsey** Miami 6-5 200 Sr.RB Willis McGahee** Miami 6-1 224 So.RB Avon Cobourne Pittsburgh 5-9 190 Sr.PK Todd Sievers Miami 6-3 214 Sr.KR/PR Nate Jones Rutgers 5-10 175 Jr.

First Team DefensePos. Player School Ht. Wt. Cl.DL William Joseph Miami 6-5 297 Sr.DL Jerome McDougle Miami 6-4 271 Sr.DL Claude Harriott Pittsburgh 6-4 245 Jr.DL Dan Klecko** Temple 6-1 276 Sr.LB Jonathan Vilma** Miami 6-2 220 Jr.LB Gerald Hayes Pittsburgh 6-3 245 Sr.LB Grant Wiley West Virginia 6-1 230 Jr.CB Antrel Rolle Miami 6-1 189 So.CB Torrie Cox** Pittsburgh 5-10 185 Sr.S Maurice Sikes Miami 5-11 193 Jr.S Sean Taylor Miami 6-3 220 So.P Andy Lee Pittsburgh 6-2 205 Jr.

Second Team OffensePos. Player School Ht. Wt. Cl.WR Jamel Riddle Syracuse 5-7 173 Jr.WR David Tyree Syracuse 6-2 198 Sr.WR Ernest Wilford Virginia Tech 6-4 216 Sr.OT Rob Petitti Pittsburgh 6-6 330 So.OG Anthony Davis Virginia Tech 6-4 320 Sr.C Dan Koppen Boston College 6-3 304 Sr.OG Ken Sandor West Virginia 6-4 300 Sr.OT Carlos Joseph Miami 6-6 334 So.TE Sean Ryan Boston College 6-5 250 Jr.QB Rod Rutherford Pittsburgh 6-3 215 Jr.RB Derrick Knight Boston College 5-9 205 Jr.RB Lee Suggs Virginia Tech 6-0 201 Sr.PK Sandro Sciortino Boston College 5-10 201 Jr.PK Cap Poklemba Temple 5-11 180 Sr.KR/PR Jamel Riddle Syracuse 5-7 173 Jr.KR/PR DeAngelo Hall Virginia Tech 5-11 200 So.

Second Team DefensePos. Player School Ht. Wt. Cl.DL Jamal Green Miami 6-3 261 Sr.DL Louis Gachelin Syracuse 6-2 284 Jr.DL Nathaniel Adibi Virginia Tech 6-3 254 Jr.DL David Upchurch West Virginia 6-3 280 Sr.LB D.J. Williams Miami 6-2 247 Jr.LB Clifton Smith Syracuse 6-3 251 Sr.LB James Davis West Virginia 6-2 230 Jr.CB Shawn Seabrooks Rutgers 5-10 190 Sr.CB DeAngelo Hall Virginia Tech 5-11 200 So.S Willie Pile Virginia Tech 6-3 205 Sr.S Angel Estrada West Virginia 6-1 200 Sr.P Vinnie Burns Virginia Tech 5-11 190 So.

**- unanimous selection

BIG EAST Offensive Players of the YearKEN DORSEY, MIAMI

WILLIS McGAHEE, MIAMI

BIG EAST Defensive Player of the YearDAN KLECKO, TEMPLE

BIG EAST Special Teams Players of the YearANDY LEE, PITTSBURGHNATE JONES, RUTGERS

BIG EAST Rookie of the YearLARRY FITZGERALD, PITTSBURGH

BIG EAST Coach of the YearLARRY COKER, MIAMI

BIG EAST Conference


RUSHING Team Cl G Att Yds Avg TD Yds/GMcGAHEE, Willis UM SO 13 282 1753 6.2 28 134.8COBOURNE, Avon WVU SR 13 335 1710 5.1 17 131.5KNIGHT, Derrick BC JR 13 259 1432 5.5 12 110.2SHARPS, Tanardo TU SR 12 311 1276 4.1 8 106.3SUGGS, Lee VT SR 14 257 1325 5.2 22 94.6REYES, Walter SU SO 12 182 1135 6.2 17 94.6MIREE,Brandon UP JR 13 214 943 4.4 4 72.5WILSON, Quincy WVU JR 13 140 901 6.4 6 69.3JONES, Kevin VT SO 13 160 871 5.4 9 67.0MARSHALL, Rashe WVU SO 13 173 666 3.8 13 51.2

PASSING AVG/GAME Team Cl G Att Cmp Int Pct. Yds TD Avg/GDORSEY, Ken UM SR 13 393 222 12 56.5 3369 28 259.2ST. PIERRE, Bri BC SR 13 407 237 17 58.2 2983 18 229.5RUTHERFORD,Rod UP JR 13 367 192 12 52.3 2783 22 214.1MCGANN, Mike TU SO 12 353 173 22 49.0 1994 13 166.2RANDALL, Bryan VT SO 14 248 158 11 63.7 2134 12 152.4NUNES, Troy SU SR 9 198 115 7 58.1 1337 8 148.6MARSHALL, Rashe WVU SO 13 259 139 5 53.7 1616 9 124.3ANDERSON, R.J SU JR 9 134 58 8 43.3 899 4 99.9

TOTAL OFFENSE Team Cl G Rush Pass Plays Total Yds/GDORSEY, Ken UM SR 13 -39 3369 416 3330 256.2RUTHERFORD,Rod UP JR 13 398 2783 549 3181 244.7ST. PIERRE, Bri BC SR 13 126 2983 475 3109 239.2RANDALL, Bryan VT SO 14 507 2134 419 2641 188.6MCGANN, Mike TU SO 12 200 1994 448 2194 182.8MARSHALL, Rashe WVU SO 13 666 1616 432 2282 175.5NUNES, Troy SU SR 9 24 1337 249 1361 151.2McGAHEE, Willis UM SO 13 1753 0 282 1753 134.8COBOURNE, Avon WVU SR 13 1710 0 335 1710 131.5ANDERSON, R.J SU JR 9 108 899 187 1007 111.9

RECEPTIONS/GAME Team Cl G Rec Yds TD Avg/C Rec/GFITZGERALD, L. UP FR 13 69 1005 12 14.6 5.31WINSLOW, Kellen UM SO 13 57 726 8 12.7 4.38JOHNSON, Andre UM JR 12 52 1092 9 21.0 4.33COBB, Zamir TU SR 12 45 483 6 10.7 3.75RIDDLE, Jamel SU JR 11 41 626 5 15.3 3.73SLADE, Lamar UP SR 13 48 649 4 13.5 3.69WILFORD, Ernest VT JR 14 51 925 7 18.1 3.64HENDERSON, Miqu WVU SO 11 40 496 2 12.4 3.64DILLARD, Sean TU SR 9 31 378 1 12.2 3.44HEMMINGS, Keith BC SR 12 41 559 2 13.6 3.42

RECEIVE YDS/GAME Team Cl G Rec Yds TD Avg/C Yds/GJOHNSON, Andre UM JR 12 52 1092 9 21.0 91.0FITZGERALD, L UP FR 13 69 1005 12 14.6 77.3WILFORD, Ernest VT JR 14 51 925 7 18.1 66.1RIDDLE, Jamel SU JR 11 41 626 5 15.3 56.9WINSLOW, Kellen UM SO 13 57 726 8 12.7 55.8SLADE, Lamar UP SR 13 48 649 4 13.5 49.9TYREE, David SU SR 12 36 559 3 15.5 46.6HEMMINGS, Keith BC SR 12 41 559 2 13.6 46.6BURKE, Jamal BC SR 11 33 498 3 15.1 45.3HENDERSON, Miqu WVU SO 11 40 496 2 12.4 45.1

ALL PURPOSE Team Cl G Rush Rcv PR KR Yds Avg/GMcGAHEE, Willis UM SO 13 1753 355 0 0 2108 162.2COBOURNE, Avon WVU SR 13 1710 146 0 0 1856 142.8KNIGHT, Derrick BC JR 13 1432 372 0 0 1804 138.8SHARPS, Tanardo TU SR 12 1276 205 0 0 1481 123.4SUGGS, Lee VT SR 14 1325 126 0 132 1583 113.1RHODES, Damien SU FR 12 568 108 3 589 1268 105.7REYES, Walter SU SO 12 1135 62 0 1 1198 99.8JOHNSON, Andre UM JR 12 -2 1092 0 91 1181 98.4RIDDLE, Jamel SU JR 11 38 626 316 0 980 89.1MIREE, Brandon UP JR 13 943 123 0 0 1066 82.0

2002 BIG EAST StatisticsINTERCEPTIONS Team Cl G Int Yds TDWILDS, Garnell VT JR 14 5 8 0PILE, Willie VT SR 14 4 171 1HALL, DeAngelo VT SO 13 4 124 1TAYLOR, Sean UM SO 13 4 122 0HAW, Brandon RU SR 12 4 17 0ADDAE, Jahmile WVU SO 13 4 14 0

FULLER, Vincent VT SO 14 4 0 0SIKES, Maurice UM JR 13 3 150 2SPENCER, S. UP JR 13 3 49 0

PARENT, Ralph BC SO 13 3 35 0

PASS EFFICIENCY Team Cl G Att Cmp Int Pct. Yds TD Eff.DORSEY, Ken UM SR 13 393 222 12 56.5 3369 28 145.9RANDALL, Bryan VT SO 14 248 158 11 63.7 2134 12 143.1RUTHERFORD, Rod UP JR 13 367 192 12 52.3 2783 22 129.3

ST. PIERRE, Bri BC SR 13 407 237 17 58.2 2983 18 126.0NUNES, Troy SU SR 9 198 115 7 58.1 1337 8 121.1MARSHALL, Rashe WVU SO 13 259 139 5 53.7 1616 9 113.7

ANDERSON, R.J. SU JR 9 134 58 8 43.3 899 4 97.5MCGANN, Mike TU SO 12 353 173 22 49.0 1994 13 96.1

PUNT RETURN AVG Team Cl G Ret Yds TD AvgHALL, DeAngelo VT SO 13 22 352 2 16.0PARRISH, Roscoe UM FR 13 27 392 0 14.5

RIDDLE, Jamel SU JR 11 23 316 1 13.7BURKE, Jamal BC SR 11 24 286 1 11.9SANDS, Ethenic UM SR 13 17 169 0 9.9

COBB, Zamir TU SR 12 23 222 0 9.7FRAZIER, Lance WVU JR 13 30 208 0 6.9SEABROOKS, Shawn RU SR 12 19 97 1 5.1

PUNTING Team Cl G Punt Yds AvgLEE,Andy UP JR 13 73 3147 43.1CAPSHAW, F. UM SR 13 54 2225 41.2

BURNS, Vinnie VT SO 14 64 2591 40.5BARR, Mike RU SR 12 92 3707 40.3SHAFER, Mike SU SR 12 69 2707 39.2

RINGWELSKI, Gar TU JR 11 47 1819 38.7McMYLER, Kevin BC SR 13 56 2087 37.3FAZZOLARI, Mark WVU SR 13 54 1993 36.9

SCORING Team Cl G TD XPT FG Pts Pts/GMcGAHEE, Willis UM SO 13 28 0 0 168 12.9

SUGGS, Lee VT SR 14 24 0 0 144 10.3REYES, Walter SU SO 12 17 2 0 104 8.7SCIORTINO, Sand BC JR 13 0 38 23 107 8.2

SIEVERS, Todd UM SR 13 0 66 13 105 8.1COBOURNE, Avon WVU SR 13 17 0 0 102 7.8KNIGHT, Derrick BC JR 13 14 0 0 84 6.5

JAMES, Todd WVU JR 13 0 46 11 79 6.1MARSHALL, Rashe WVU SO 13 13 0 0 78 6.0FITZGERALD, L. UP FR 13 12 0 0 72 5.5

SCORING (TDs) Team Cl G TD Rush Pass Ret PAT Pts Pts/GMcGAHEE, Willis UM SO 13 28 28 0 0 0 168 12.9

SUGGS, Lee VT SR 14 24 22 2 0 0 144 10.3REYES, Walter SU SO 12 17 17 0 0 1 104 8.7COBOURNE, Avon WVU SR 13 17 17 0 0 0 102 7.8

KNIGHT, Derrick BC JR 13 14 12 2 0 0 84 6.5MARSHALL, Rashe WVU SO 13 13 13 0 0 0 78 6.0FITZGERALD, L. UP FR 13 12 0 12 0 0 72 5.5

RHODES, Damien SU FR 12 9 7 1 1 1 56 4.7JOHNSON, Andre UM JR 12 9 0 9 0 0 54 4.5SHARPS, Tanardo TU SR 12 9 8 1 0 0 54 4.5


TACKLES Team Cl G Pos Solo Ast Total Avg/G SackSMITH, Clifton SU SR 12 LB 89 48 137 11.4 2.0BRACKETT, Gary RU SR 12 LB 82 48 130 10.8 4.0HAYES,Gerald UP SR 13 LB 94 39 133 10.2 2.0VILMA, Jonathan UM JR 13 LB 75 58 133 10.2 1.5OTT, Josh BC JR 13 LB 81 47 128 9.8 0.0WILEY, Grant WVU JR 13 LB 81 41 122 9.4 2.0MORRIS,Tez UP FR 13 DB 71 48 119 9.2 1.0ESTRADA, Angel WVU SR 13 DB 72 42 114 8.8 5.0SEABROOKS,Shawn RU SR 12 DB 68 36 104 8.7 1.0DAVIS, James WVU SR 13 LB 60 52 112 8.6 4.0BAAQEE, Mikal VT SO 13 LB 68 44 112 8.6 3.5DUMAS, Jameel SU JR 11 LB 58 36 94 8.5 0.5CIURCIU, Vinny BC SR 13 LB 61 47 108 8.3 0.0WILLIAMS, D.J UM JR 13 LB 55 53 108 8.3 4.0WALLACE, Jamal TU SR 12 SAF 65 31 96 8.0 0.0PARENT, Ralph BC SO 13 SAF 68 31 99 7.6 1.0COLLINS, Ben WVU SR 13 LB 48 50 98 7.5 0.0PILE, Willie VT SR 14 SAF 66 38 104 7.4 0.0WALKER, Keeon SU SR 12 SS 70 18 88 7.3 2.0MOORE,Lewis UP JR 13 LB 69 25 94 7.2 1.0ADDAE, Jahmile WVU SO 13 DB 58 36 94 7.2 0.0JONES, Nathan RU JR 12 DB 69 15 84 7.0 0.0BENDER, Brian RU SR 12 LB 57 24 81 6.8 2.0TAYLOR, Sean UM SO 13 DB 53 32 85 6.5 0.0BESSETTE, Doug BC SR 12 SS 59 19 78 6.5 0.0HUNTER, Will SU SR 12 CB 63 15 78 6.5 0.0ROBINSON, Vegas VT JR 11 LB 54 17 71 6.5 0.0LEFTWICH, Terra TU SR 12 CB 54 23 77 6.4 0.0WALLACE, Rian TU FR 12 LB 51 25 76 6.3 1.0COX,Torrie UP SR 13 DB 70 12 82 6.3 0.0KLECKO, Dan TU SR 11 DL 46 22 68 6.2 10.0FLORES, Brian BC JR 12 LB 43 31 74 6.2 0.0SIKES, Maurice UM JR 13 DB 34 46 80 6.2 0.0BEINECKE,Brian UP SR 13 LB 50 29 79 6.1 2.0THAXTON, Jermai WVU SR 13 DB 42 37 79 6.1 0.0HARRIOTT,Claude UP JR 13 DL 50 28 78 6.0 9.5ALMONTE, Jairo TU SR 12 DB 40 31 71 5.9 0.0KING, Brian WVU JR 13 DB 60 16 76 5.8 0.0SCOTT, O'Neil SU SO 11 SAF 47 14 61 5.5 1.0CROCHUNIS,Vince UP SO 13 DL 37 34 71 5.5 2.5JACKSON, Yazid TU JR 12 DB 48 17 65 5.4 0.0MANNING, Brandon VT SO 14 LB 37 38 75 5.4 1.0ORR, Raheem RU SR 12 DE 39 23 62 5.2 4.5GREGORY, Steven SU FR 11 CB 49 7 56 5.1 0.0JOHNSON, Jarvis RU SO 12 DB 48 13 61 5.1 0.0ROLLE, Antrel UM SO 13 CB 48 18 66 5.1 1.5

SACKS Team Cl G Pos Solo Ast Yds Total Avg/GKLECKO, Dan TU SR 11 DL 9 2 82 10.0 0.91HARRIOTT,Claude UP JR 13 DL 9 1 78 9.5 0.73GREEN, Jamaal UM SR 13 DE 9 1 47 9.5 0.73ADIBI, Nathaniel VT JR 14 DE 9 0 61 9.0 0.64COLAS, Cols VT JR 14 DE 8 2 48 9.0 0.64GACHELIN, Louis SU JR 12 DT 8 1 44 8.5 0.71McDOUGLE, J. UM SR 12 DE 6 1 44 6.5 0.54GUZEK,Brian UP SR 13 DL 5 2 39 6.0 0.46ROSSY, Derric BC SR 12 DE 6 0 36 6.0 0.50WILFORK, Vince UM SO 12 DT 5 2 28 6.0 0.50GREEN, C. UM SR 10 DE 5 1 40 5.5 0.55DAVIS, Jim VT JR 14 DE 5 1 32 5.5 0.39JOSEPH, William UM SR 13 DT 5 0 35 5.0 0.38ESTRADA, Angel WVU SR 13 DB 5 0 22 5.0 0.38

TACKLES FOR LOSS Team Cl G Pos Solo Ast Yds Total Avg/GKLECKO, Dan TU SR 11 DL 21 3 114 22.5 2.05HARRIOTT,Claude UP JR 13 DL 19 2 106 20.0 1.54COLAS, Cols VT JR 14 DE 18 1 74 18.5 1.32HAYES,Gerald UP SR 13 LB 16 3 42 17.5 1.35GACHELIN, Louis SU JR 12 DT 16 2 61 17.0 1.42JOSEPH, William UM SR 13 DT 14 2 60 15.0 1.15ADIBI, Nathaniel VT JR 14 DE 15 0 72 15.0 1.07McDOUGLE, J. UM SR 12 DE 12 4 62 14.0 1.17WILLIAMS, D.J. UM JR 13 LB 13 2 45 14.0 1.08UPCHURCH, David WVU SR 13 DL 13 2 28 14.0 1.08DAVIS, James WVU SR 13 LB 14 0 64 14.0 1.08SMITH, Clifton SU SR 12 LB 12 3 29 13.5 1.12WILFORK, Vince UM SO 12 DT 11 4 46 13.0 1.08BEINECKE,Brian UP SR 13 LB 11 2 38 12.0 0.92WILEY, Grant WVU JR 13 LB 12 0 40 12.0 0.92

SCORING OFFENSE G TD XP 2XP DXP FG Saf Pts AvgMiami 13 70 66 0 0 13 1 527 40.5Virginia Tech 14 56 51 1 0 12 2 429 30.6West Virginia 13 52 47 0 0 11 2 396 30.5Boston College 13 46 40 2 0 24 0 392 30.2Syracuse 12 45 38 3 0 11 0 347 28.9Pittsburgh 13 41 35 1 0 16 0 331 25.5Temple 12 29 22 2 0 14 0 242 20.2Rutgers 12 22 18 1 0 5 0 167 13.9

SCORING DEFENSE G TD XP 2XP DXP FG Saf Pts AvgPittsburgh 13 27 25 0 0 15 0 232 17.8Virginia Tech 14 34 28 2 0 9 0 263 18.8Miami 13 31 27 1 0 11 0 248 19.1Boston College 13 31 29 1 0 12 0 253 19.5West Virginia 13 39 34 1 0 10 1 302 23.2Temple 12 46 41 1 0 10 1 351 29.2Rutgers 12 51 44 1 0 13 3 397 33.1Syracuse 12 52 47 1 0 15 0 406 33.8

PASS OFFENSE G Att Cmp Int Pct. Yds Avg TD Yds/GMiami 13 432 241 13 55.8 3695 8.6 32 284.2Boston College 13 414 243 17 58.7 3010 7.3 18 231.5Pittsburgh 13 371 194 12 52.3 2796 7.5 22 215.1Syracuse 12 333 174 15 52.3 2252 6.8 12 187.7Temple 12 380 186 23 48.9 2166 5.7 15 180.5Rutgers 12 413 188 23 45.5 1948 4.7 12 162.3Virginia Tech 14 272 168 11 61.8 2229 8.2 14 159.2West Virginia 13 279 148 9 53.0 1753 6.3 11 134.8

PASS DEFENSE G Att Cmp Int Pct. Yds Avg TD Yds/GMiami 13 353 163 12 46.2 1556 4.4 8 119.7Boston College 13 373 201 15 53.9 2237 6.0 12 172.1Pittsburgh 13 400 210 15 52.5 2321 5.8 8 178.5Rutgers 12 333 171 11 51.4 2376 7.1 25 198.0Temple 12 356 210 11 59.0 2488 7.0 20 207.3West Virginia 13 416 230 19 55.3 2777 6.7 17 213.6Virginia Tech 14 443 230 24 51.9 2991 6.8 14 213.6Syracuse 12 384 223 10 58.1 3645 9.5 22 303.8

RUSHING OFFENSE G Att Yds Avg TD Yds/GWest Virginia 13 714 3687 5.2 39 283.6Virginia Tech 14 659 2974 4.5 35 212.4Syracuse 12 528 2265 4.3 30 188.8Miami 13 455 2379 5.2 33 183.0Boston College 13 492 2064 4.2 25 158.8Pittsburgh 13 547 1860 3.4 15 143.1Temple 12 474 1647 3.5 11 137.2Rutgers 12 420 620 1.5 5 51.7

RUSHING DEFENSE G Rushes Yards Avg. TD Yds/GTemple 12 459 1300 2.8 22 108.3Pittsburgh 13 478 1527 3.2 17 117.5Virginia Tech 14 495 1700 3.4 19 121.4West Virginia 13 453 1584 3.5 19 121.8Boston College 13 549 2166 3.9 17 166.6Miami 13 582 2202 3.8 19 169.4Syracuse 12 497 2063 4.2 26 171.9Rutgers 12 525 2484 4.7 20 207.0

TOTAL OFFENSE G Rush Pass Plays Yards Avg/P TD Yds/GMiami 13 2379 3695 887 6074 6.8 65 467.2West Virginia 13 3687 1753 993 5440 5.5 50 418.5Boston College 13 2064 3010 906 5074 5.6 43 390.3Syracuse 12 2265 2252 861 4517 5.2 42 376.4Virginia Tech 14 2974 2229 931 5203 5.6 49 371.6Pittsburgh 13 1860 2796 918 4656 5.1 37 358.2Temple 12 1647 2166 854 3813 4.5 26 317.8Rutgers 12 620 1948 833 2568 3.1 17 214.0

TOTAL DEFENSE G Rush Pass Plys Yards Avg TD Yds/GMiami 13 2202 1556 935 3758 4.0 27 289.1Pittsburgh 13 1527 2321 878 3848 4.4 25 296.0Temple 12 1300 2488 815 3788 4.6 42 315.7Virginia Tech 14 1700 2991 938 4691 5.0 33 335.1West Virginia 13 1584 2777 869 4361 5.0 36 335.5Boston College 13 2166 2237 922 4403 4.8 29 338.7Rutgers 12 2484 2376 858 4860 5.7 45 405.0Syracuse 12 2063 3645 881 5708 6.5 48 475.7

PUNT RETURNS G Ret Yds TD AvgVirginia Tech 14 41 572 3 14.0Syracuse 12 31 421 2 13.6Miami 13 50 662 1 13.2Boston College 13 35 345 1 9.9Temple 12 30 257 0 8.6Rutgers 12 33 242 1 7.3Pittsburgh 13 43 303 1 7.0West Virginia 13 34 239 0 7.0

SACKS BY G TotYardsMiami 13 47 292Virginia Tech 14 42 292Pittsburgh 13 30 230Temple 12 26 208Boston College 13 26 152Syracuse 12 26 172Rutgers 12 15 109West Virginia 13 15 93

2002 BIG EAST

Defensive Statistics

Season Team Rankings


Two of the nation's toplinebackers and nine of thetop 15 players in the state ofVirginia, as rated bySuperPrep Magazine,highlight a football recruitingclass composed of 23student-athletes who signedgrants-in-aid with VirginiaTech on Wednesday. Three ofthose signees enrolled atTech in January and arealready taking part in classesand winter workouts.

Hampton's Xavier Adibi(6-3, 215) and Chesapeake'sVince Hall (6-1, 240) areranked the No. 4 and the No.5 linebackers in the nation,respectively, by SuperPrep.Adibi and Hall, along withdefensive end Chris Ellis ofHampton, Va., comprise thetop three players in theCommonwealth as ranked by

SuperPrep. The RoanokeTimes ranked Adibi No. 1 inthe state, while Hall was thirdand Ellis was fourth.

Adibi was the state'sdefensive player of the yearas voted on by the VirginiaHigh School Coaches'Association (VHSCA) afterleading his team to itssecond-consecutive VirginiaAAA Group 6 statechampionship. He finishedwith a team-best 13.5 sacks,100-plus tackles and 31tackles for loss. Adibi wasranked the No. 1 player inVirginia by SuperPrep andthe No. 4 inside linebacker inthe nation by Tom Lemmingon ESPN.com.

Hall earned the GatoradeState High School Player ofthe Year award and was ratedthe No. 2 prospect in Virginia

by SuperPrep Magazine. Hewas also ranked the No. 5inside linebacker in the nationby Tom Lemming onESPN.com. He earned first-team all-state honors fromboth The Associated Pressand the VHSCA, whileearning second-team honorson the VHSCA team as atight end. For his final season,he recorded over 120 tackles,23 tackles for loss and 10sacks.

Ellis was ranked the No.13 defensive end in thecountry and the No. 3prospect in Virginia bySuperPrep. This past season,he led his team with 50tackles – seven for loss – and10 sacks. He was rated theNo. 21 defensive end in thenation by Tom Lemming onESPN.com.

Joining Adibi, Hall andEllis on the SuperPrep All-America team were tight endJohn Kinzer of Fairfax andoffensive lineman TrippCarroll, who played most ofhis high school career inCharlotte, N.C., beforeplaying his final season inJacksonville, Fla. Kinzer wasrated the No. 5 tight end inthe nation by SuperPrep,while Carroll was rated theNo. 13 offensive lineman inthe nation by the samemagazine.

Adibi, Carroll, Ellis andHall were also named to thePrepStar All-America team,along with fellow signees JoeRazzano and offensivelineman Matt Welsh.Razzano, from Milford, Ohio,was rated the No. 7 fullback inthe nation by Tom Lemming

Three of the 23 signees – Carroll, Gordon and Griffin – are already enrolled at Virginia Tech.

Name Pos. Hgt. Wgt. Last School HometownXavier Adibi Linebacker 6-3 215 Phoebus H.S. Hampton, Va.Barry Booker Defensive End 6-5 270 Amherst H.S. Amherst, Va.Duane Brown Tight End 6-6 248 Hermitage H.S. Richmond, Va.Michael Brown Linebacker 6-3 218 Palm Beach Gardens H.S. Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.Tripp Carroll Offensive Line 6-4 290 Myers Park H.S. Charlotte, N.C.David Clowney Wide Receiver 6-1 175 Atlantic H.S. Delray Beach, Fla.Chris Ellis Defensive End 6-4 245 Bethel H.S. Hampton, Va.Corey Gordon Defensive Back 6-3 205 Hargrave Academy (Va.) Gainesville, Fla.James Griffin Safety 6-2 195 Pasadena (Calif.) C.C. Memphis, Tenn.Vince Hall Linebacker 6-1 240 Western Branch H.S. Chesapeake, Va.Michael Hinton Athlete 6-3 200 Hargrave Academy (Va.) Burlington, N.C.Cory Holt Quarterback 6-4 205 Lexington H.S. Lexington, N.C.Josh Hyman Wide Receiver 6-0 180 Fork Union Military (Va.) Chesapeake, Va.John Kinzer Tight End 6-5 255 Robinson H.S. Fairfax, Va.Kenny Lewis Running Back 5-9 185 George Washington H.S. Danville, Va.Nick Marshman Offensive Line 6-5 270 Turner Ashby H.S. Harrisonburg, Va.Roland Minor Defensive Back 6-1 175 H.D. Woodson H.S. Washington, D.C.D.J. Parker Defensive Back 6-0 180 Phoebus H.S. Hampton, Va.Carlton Powell Defensive Tackle 6-3 290 Great Bridge H.S. Chesapeake, Va.Joe Razzano Running Back 6-0 220 Milford H.S. Milford, OhioKory Robertson Defensive Line 6-3 295 Magna Vista H.S. Martinsville, Va.Brett Warren Linebacker 6-1 212 Centreville H.S. Clifton, Va.Matt Welsh Offensive Line 6-5 280 Centreville H.S. Clifton, Va.

Virginia Tech’s 2003 Football Recruiting Class

Tech Signs 23 to Football Grants-in-Aid

Two of Nation's Top LBs Highlight Class


2002 Lettermen and

Returning Starters

on ESPN.com and carried theball 90 times for 542 yards asa senior. Welsh, from Fairfax,was ranked the No. 39 playerin the Mid-Atlantic region byTom Lemming's Prep FootballReport. Carroll was named toPrepStar's "Dream Team" asone of the top 100 players inthe nation.

The Hokies also picked upa junior college All-Americanin rover James Griffin fromPasadena (Calif.) CityCollege. Griffin, who went tohigh school in Memphis,Tenn., was rated the No. 76junior college prospect bySuperPrep Magazine andwas named one of PrepStar'stop 125 JUCOs as adefensive back. He was alsonamed a first-team All-America linebacker by JCGrid-Wire.

The Hokies signed a totalof 14 players from the state ofVirginia, 12 of whom wereranked among the state's top26 players by The RoanokeTimes. Tech's other signeesfrom Virginia were defensiveend Barry Booker of Amherst(#18); tight end Duane Brownof Richmond (#13); widereceiver Josh Hyman ofChesapeake, who preppedlast year at Fork UnionMilitary Academy; runningback Kenny Lewis of Danville(#26); offensive lineman NickMarshman of Harrisonburg(#23); quarterback D.J. Parkerof Hampton; defensive tackleCarlton Powell ofChesapeake (#24); defensivetackle Kory Robertson ofMartinsville (#16); andlinebacker Brett Warren ofClifton (#17).

For the 15th time since1988, the Hokies' classcontains at least one playerfrom the state of Florida. Thisyear's class has linebacker/defensive end Michael Brown(Palm Beach Gardens), widereceiver David Clowney(Delray Beach) and freesafety Corey Gordon(Gainesville). Brown wasranked the No. 10 insidelinebacker in the nation byTom Lemming on ESPN.com,

while Clowney was anhonorable mention all-statewide receiver. Gordon, a freesafety, attended prep schoollast fall at Hargrave inChatham, Va. He was namedto the all-area team by TheGainesville Sun as a seniorin high school.

Tech also tapped intoNorth Carolina's talent,signing three players from theTar Heel State. In addition toCarroll, Tech signedquarterback Cory Holt ofLexington, who tied a staterecord as a junior by throwingfor eight touchdown passesin a game, and Burlington'sMichael Hinton, who alsoplayed at Hargrave in the fall.Hinton was rated the No. 14player in the state of Virginiaby SuperPrep this past year.

Virginia Tech also pickedup one of the top playersfrom Washington, D.C., indefensive back Roland Minor.Minor was ranked the No. 13player in the DC andMaryland area by SuperPrepand earned first-team All-Metro honors from TheWashington Post as a senior.

Three of Tech's signees –Razzano, Lewis and Warren– are the sons of former NFLplayers. Both Razzano andLewis' fathers played at Techbefore going on to the proranks with the CincinnatiBengals and New York Jets,respectively. Razzano's dad,Rick, still ranks as theHokies' all-time leadingtackler (634), while Lewis'father, Kenny, Sr., still holdsthe Tech single-game recordfor rushing yards (223).Warren's father, Don, played14 years for the WashingtonRedskins.

Warren and Adibi will jointheir older brothers at Tech,giving the Hokies three setsof brothers on their defense.Warren's brother, Blake, willbe a redshirt sophomorelinebacker this fall, whileAdibi's brother, Nathaniel, willbe a senior defensive end.Brothers Kevin and JonathanLewis played side-by-side lastyear on Tech's defensive line.

Total Lettermen: 60; Lost 15/Returning 45(Starts in parentheses)

Offense

Lost - 7 Returning - 17Terrell Parham (1) SE Ernest Wilford (13),

Chris Shreve,#Chris Clifton

TE Keith Willis (8),Jeff King (6),#Jared Mazzetta

Anthony Davis (14) OT Jon Dunn (7),Jimmy Martin (7)

Luke Owens (14) OG Jacob Gibson (12),Jim Miller (2),

C Jake Grove (14)Grant Noel (2) QB Bryan Randall (12)Josh Spence FB Doug Easlick (14),

†Cedric HumesLee Suggs (14) TB Kevin JonesShawn Witten (12) FL Richard Johnson (2),

Justin Hamilton

Defense

Lost - 6 Returning - 25Lamar Cobb E Nathaniel Adibi (13),

Cols Colas (9),Jim Davis (6),Darryl Tapp

T Jason Lallis (12),Kevin Lewis (11),Jonathan Lewis (3),Tim Sandidge (2),Jimmy E. Williams,†Jason Murphy

Chris Buie OLB Brandon Manning (13),†Mike Daniels (1)

Alex Markogiannakis (1) ILB Mikal Baaqee (13),Vegas Robinson (11),†James Anderson (1),#Chad Cooper,#Blake Warren,#Jordan Trott

Ronyell Whitaker (10) CB §DeAngelo Hall (10),Garnell Wilds (4),Vincent Fuller (4),#Cary Wade

Billy Hardee (4) ROV Michael Crawford (10),D.J. Walton

Willie Pile (14) S Jimmy F. Williams

Specialists

Lost - 2 Returning - 3PK Carter Warley

Jon Mollerup KOP Vinnie BurnsH Robert Peaslee

Ken Keister DS

#Lettered mainly for play on special teams†Has changed positions for 2003 spring practice§Will remain at defensive position, but also work on offense


UCF

Tech leads 2-0-02000 aW 44- 212001 hW 46- 14

James Madison

Tech leads 5-0-01980 hW 38- 61988 hW 27- 61991 hW 41- 121992 hW 49- 201999 hW 47- 0

Texas A&M

Texas A&M leads 2-1-01976 aL 0- 191977 hL 6- 272002 aW 13- 3

Connecticut

Tech leads 1-0-02001 hW 52- 10

Rutgers

Tech leads 10-3-01920 aL 6- 191953 aL 13- 201992 aL 49- 501993 hW 49- 421994 hW 41- 341995 aW 45- 171996 hW 30- 141997 aW 59- 191998 hW 47- 71999 aW 58- 202000 hW 49- 02001 aW 50- 02002 hW 35- 14

Syracuse

SU leads 9-7-01964 aL 15- 201985 hW 24- 141986 aW 26- 171987 hL 21- 351988 aL 0- 351992 aL 9- 281993 hW 45- 241994 aL 20- 281995 hW 31- 71996 aL 21- 521997 hW 31- 31998 aL 26- 281999 hW 62- 02000 aW 22- 142001 hL 14- 222002 aL(3OT) 42- 50

West Virginia

WVU leads 27-20-11912 hW 41- 01915 aL 0- 191916 nL 0- 201917 nL 3- 271952 aL 7- 271953 nL 7- 121957 aL 0- 141958 nL 20- 211959 aW 12- 01960 nW 15- 01961 aL 0- 28

1981 aL 14- 211982 hL 8- 141987 aL 13- 271992 hL 23- 431993 aL 2- 211994 aL 3- 241995 hW 13- 71996 aW 21- 71997 hW 27- 251998 aW (ot)27- 201999 hW 43- 102000 aL 21- 412001 hL 24- 262002 aL 45- 56

Pittsburgh

Tech leads 7-3-01993 aW 63- 211994 hW 45- 71995 aW 26- 161996 hW 34- 171997 aL 23- 301998 hW 27- 71999 aW 30- 172000 hW 37- 342001 aL 7- 382002 hL 21- 28

Temple

Tech leads *13-3-01934 aL 0- 341984 aW 9- 71986 *nF 13- 291989 hW 23- 01990 aL 28- 311992 aW 26- 71993 hW 55- 7

1994 hW 41- 131995 nW 38- 161996 hW 38- 01997 aW 23- 131998 hL 24- 281999 aW 62- 72000 hW 35- 132001 aW 35- 02002 hW 20- 10

*Temple forfeited a gamedue to an ineligible player.

Boston College

Tech leads 8-2-01993 aL 34- 481994 aW 12- 71995 hL 14- 201996 aW 45- 71997 hW 17- 71998 aW 17- 01999 hW 38- 142000 aW 48- 342001 hW 34- 202002 aW 28- 23

Virginia

Tech leads 43-36-51895 aL 0- 381896 aL 0- 441899 aL 0- 281900 aL 5- 171901 hL 0- 161902 aL 0- 61903 nL 0- 211904 nL 0- 51905 aW 11- 0

1923 aW 6- 31924 hL 0- 61925 aL 0- 101926 hW 6- 01927 aL 0- 71928 hW 20- 01929 aW 32- 121930 hW 34- 131931 aT 0- 01932 hW 13- 01933 aT 6- 61934 hW 19- 61935 aT 0- 01936 hW 7- 61937 aW 14- 71938 hL 6- 141939 aW 13- 01940 nW 6- 01941 nL 0- 341942 nW 20- 141945 nL 13- 311946 nT 21- 211947 nL 7- 411948 nL 0- 281949 nL 0- 261950 nL 6- 451951 nL 0- 331952 nL 0- 421953 aW 20- 61954 nW 6- 01955 nW 17- 131956 nW 14- 71957 nL 7- 381958 nW 22- 131959 nW 40- 141960 nW 40- 61961 nW 20- 01962 nW 20- 151963 nW 10- 01964 aL 17- 201965 hW 22- 141966 aW 24- 71970 hL 0- 71971 aW 6- 01972 aL 20- 241973 hW 27- 151974 aL 27- 281975 hW 24- 171976 aW 14- 101977 hT 14- 141978 aL 7- 171979 aL 18- 201980 hW 30- 01981 aW 20- 31982 hW 21- 141983 aW 48- 01984 hL 23- 261985 aW 28- 101986 hW 42- 101987 aL 13- 141988 hL 10- 161989 aL 25- 321990 hW 38- 131991 aL 0- 381992 hL 38- 411993 aW 20- 171994 hL 23- 421995 aW 36- 291996 hW 26- 91997 aL 20- 341998 hL 32- 361999 aW 31- 72000 hW 42- 212001 aW 31- 172002 hW 21- 9

Series vs. 2003 Opponents1962 nL 0- 141963 aW 28- 31964 hL 10- 231965 aL 22- 311966 hT 13- 131967 aW 20- 71968 hW 27- 121973 aL 10- 241974 hL 21- 221975 aL 7- 101976 hW 24- 71977 aL 14- 201978 hW 16- 31979 aL 23- 341980 hW 34- 111981 aL 6- 271982 hL 6- 161983 aL 0- 131984 hL 7- 141985 aL 9- 241986 hW 13- 71987 aL 16- 281988 hL 10- 221989 aW 12- 101990 hW 26- 211991 aW 20- 141992 hL 7- 161993 aL 13- 141994 hW 34- 61995 aW 27- 01996 hW 31- 141997 aL 17- 301998 hW 27- 131999 aW 22- 202000 hW 48- 202001 aW 35- 02002 hL 18- 21

Miami

Miami leads 15-5-01953 aL 0- 261966 nL 7- 141967 hL 7- 141968 aL 8- 131974 aL 7- 141980 nL 10- 20

Michael Crawford, Vegas Robinson (6) and the Hokies will take on Texas A&M again in 2003.

42 James AndersonLB • r-So.

45 Mikal BaaqeeLB • r-Jr.

46 Chris BuieFB • r-Sr.

38 Vinnie BurnsP • r-Jr.

37 Steve CanterFB • r-Sr.

16 Chris CliftonSE • r-So.

33 Chad CooperLB • r-Jr.

21 Michael CrawfordROV • r-Sr.

31 Mike DanielsFS • r-Jr.

79 Jon DunnOT • r-Jr.

8 Vincent FullerCB • r-Jr.

60 Jacob GibsonOT/OG • r-Sr.

1 Eric GreenCB • r-Jr.

27 Justin HamiltonFL • r-So.

32 Cedric HumesTB/FB • r-So.

20 Mike ImohRB • So.

12 Richard JohnsonFL • r-Jr.

90 Jeff KingTE • r-So.

91 Jason LallisDT • r-Jr.

56 Jonathan LewisDT • So.

70 Kevin LewisDT • r-Jr.

52 Jimmy MartinOT • So.

85 Jared MazzettaTE • r-Jr.

76 James MillerOG • Jr.

72 Jason MurphyOG • r-So.

89 Robert PeasleeP • r-Sr.

71 Tim SandidgeDT • r-So.

23 Nic SchmittPK/P • So.

81 Chris ShreveSE • r-Sr.

55 Darryl TappDE • So.

5 Marcus VickQB • r-Fr.

49 Carter WarleyPK • r-Sr.

40 Blake WarrenLB • r-So.

17 Garnell WildsCB • r-Sr.

98 Jimmy E. WilliamsDT • Sr.

18 Jimmy F. WilliamsFS • So.

Other Hokies To Watch

Documents

2003 Spring Football